Dear Howley families,

We very much hope you all had a wonderful summer. It has been a brilliant start to this new school year. On Monday and Tuesday, staff came together for training on Safeguarding and Trauma Informed Practice and then, as I’m sure you are all more than aware, Howley re-opened to our fantastic children on Wednesday. It was lovely to see so many happy smiling faces (parents as well as children!) and everyone has been getting to know their teachers, reconnecting with friends and working really hard-what a great start!

I must give a special mention to our new reception children. They have been visiting us this week and have stayed for lunch too. They look so smart and grown up in their uniforms and have settled brilliantly - we are so very proud of them! We would like to welcome all of our new children and their families to our school and look forward to many years of fun, friendship, learning and laughter.

Unfortunately, I do have some very sad news to share with you. As many of you know, Mr Davis left us at the end of July to embark on new adventures in Australia. However, at the beginning of the summer, Mr Davis unexpectedly lost a very close family member. Understandably, his plans to travel have been postponed at this difficult time. Whilst we wish it was under very different circumstances, he will be re-joining our team for the next couple of months or so, covering and supporting around our school. I know you will join me in sending Mr Davis and his family our deepest condolences and show him how much he is cared for here at Howley when you see him around school.

We had a lovely surprise this week when the most spectacular post box topper was spotted on Frankley Avenue.

To think that members of our community have taken the time to create this representation of our school is truly humbling. The detail is astounding! You can see our owl, the pond and it even includes our school values of ‘Achieve, Believe, Care’. It has been shared with staff and our children in assembly this week and has sent a real buzz and sense of pride throughout our school. It is just fantastic and I would like to pass my sincere thanks on to the very talented people who created this, and the other post box toppers around our local area - they bring cheer to all and always brighten my day!

Wishing you all a lovely weekend,

Miss Lewis