Riverside News Issue 465 - 26.09.25 - Riverside Primary School

⭐ STAR of the Week ⭐

Leopard: Dexter S

For settling into school so beautifully! Dexter loves everything about school and is such a good role model for others – always smiling, sharing and being kind to others. Well done Dexter, what a great start to your school journey.

Zebra: Alfie R

For settling into school amazingly well, forming wonderful friendships and already showing a genuine love for learning that shines through each day. Well done superstar!

Lion: Poppy S

For using our ‘word of the week’ in your writing and for linking your sentences using the conjunction, ‘and’. On top of this, you have made a big effort to keep our book corner tidy and welcoming for everyone. Well done and keep up the amazing work!

Bear: Chase J

For excellent participation in phonics sessions. You have been an absolute superstar with your belnding and segmenting and have shown great enthusiasm for phonics lessons. Keep up the amazing work Chase!

Otter: Boston C

For always being so enthusiastic during carpet time, especially phonics. Boston enjoys saying his sounds and is always one of the first to say the answer during maths. Well done Boston for always being such an eager and motivated learner.

Seal: Primrose P

For her wonderful enthusiasm during our History lesson this week. Primrose loved sharing facts she could remember about Queen Elizabeth II and put her detective hat on to study evidence about Queen Victoria and where she lived. Keep up the great work Primrose!

Dolphin: Maisie C

For working so hard in each lesson and for building confidence in completing challenging tasks. Well done Maisie, we are proud of you.

Giraffe: Oliver S

For participating brilliantly in our Home Safety Workshop and showing excellent knowledge. His enthusiasm and thoughtful contributions made him stand out. Well done

Turtle: Elsie R

For always giving her best in everything she does and showing wonderful resilience in all her tasks.

Panda: Peyton L

For your warning story! You did a fantastic job by using exciting adjectives and joining your ideas with conjunctions to make it flow really well. Well done!

Tiger: Thea S

For outstanding effort in learning our Dance for the Music Festival. You danced with energy and put your heart into it. Amazing effort, well done Thea!

Meerkat: Lilly O

For working with determination and focus in her creative writing, developing powerful tension in her story and pushing her ideas to the next level.

Rhino: Aiden P

For excellent work crafting a creative portal story and for always being ready to learn, showing great strive and imagination.

Kangaroo: Lily S

For a super start to Riverside, working hard and for fantastic work in History and RE.

Koala: Jack T

For showing great resilience and determination over the last couple of weeks to overcome challenges with an amazing positive attitude – we are very proud of you Jack!

📅 UPCOMING EVENTS! 📅

Dates not shown on previous issues are added in RED!

Autumn 1 2025

29/09-17/10/25 — Year 4 OUMTC Autumn Edition

02/10/25 — Census Day – Special Menu

14/10/25 — Roman Feast Day – Special Menu

15/10/25 — Year 5/6 Duxford Trip

16/10/25 — Harvest – HARP assemblies

22/10/25 — Individual Photographs

24/10/25 — PTA Spookathon

24/10/25 — Children break up today

Autumn 2 2025

03/11/25 — Children return today

06/11/25 — Flu Immunisation

15-23/11/25 — TTRS Maths Week England

Letters

Below are a list of letters, leaflets and posters uploaded to the website this week.

Leaflets/Posters for Parents

Letters sent this week

Year 3 History Walk – 26.09.25

Singing lessons with Heidi – 24.09.25

Harvest Festival – 24.09.25

MTC Parent Letter – 24.09.25

Duxford Air Museum – 22.09.25

Previous letters, leaflets and posters can be found on the school website Events & Letters > Letters & Parent Meetings

Reminders

Reporting Pupil Absence

This is a reminder to all parents/carers that the correct way to report absences is to leave a message on the absence line answerphone daily. If messages are sent by email to the admin email address they will not be registered in time for the morning attendance and you may then receive a call from our attendance team.

Supervision

This is a gentle reminder that parents are responsible for supervising their children and siblings on-site before and after school. We have had a couple of incidents reported to us which were considered ‘near misses’ and children could have got hurt. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

KS1 Playground
Please do not allow children to play on the equipment either before/after school. At the end of the day, parents and children should leave the site promptly . This enables us to open up the playground for our other clubs. Thank you.

KS2 Playground
Please note that the day in KS2 does not start until 8:40am when the doors open. Children should not be left unsupervised on the playground before this time. Children should not play on the equipment. Thank you

Latest Facebook Posts

📚🖋️ Young Poets in Print 📚🖋️

Special Menu

Front Row Music

Online Safety Guides

Before children have even learnt to read, most can navigate through devices to play games and watch cartoons.

Internet Matters primary school guide helps you to:

Get up to speed on popular apps and platforms like YouTube and Roblox
Learn more about risks and challenges they might face, from inappropriate content and too much screentime.
Find tips and resources to protect them from online harms

Prospective Families

Is your child starting school in September 2026?

The primary school (Reception) admission round opens on Monday 10 November 2025 for parents of children to apply for a Reception school place for the academic year that starts in September 2026. The statutory national closing date for applications is 15 January 2026.

From 10 November 2025, applications can be made online via www.essex.gov.uk/admissions. 99% of parents in Essex applied online last year.

The website also has a copy of the Primary Education in Essex 2025-26 booklet and the Schools Admissions Policies Directories contain details of all admission policies.

We will be conducting tours for prospective families on the following dates for children who are starting school in September 2025. If you would like to attend a tour, please complete the form below. We welcome your child to attend also. All tours begin at 9:30 and last approximately one hour.

We will also be hosting an Open Evening on Thursday 20th November with tours starting at 5:30pm and 6:30pm lasting approximately one hour. Please come and view the school, meet our staff and sample our fantastic school dinners. Teachers will be on hand to give tours and provide you with any information you may need.

Should you wish to attend a tour, our open evening or both, please complete a form above.

OPAL

We are excited to share that we have begun the OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) project to enhance the lunchtime experience even furtherfor your children. The aim is to provide more opportunities for creative and active play.

Please keep an eye out for a parent survey that will be sent to you soon. This section of the newsletter will keep you updated on our OPAL journey, including upcoming developments and ways you can get involved.

Also, if you are having a clear-out, please look out for our donation requests for resources to enhance the playground. Your contributions would be greatly appreciated!

As part of our exciting OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) journey, we are continuing to develop a rich and varied outdoor play experience for all our children—whatever the weather!

To help us make the most of our wonderful outdoor spaces even as the weather turns wetter and muddier, we are asking that every child brings a pair of wellies to school from September. These will be kept in school so that children can continue to enjoy outdoor play at lunchtimes and still return to lessons feeling clean, dry, and comfortable.

Thank you for your continued support as we build a happier, healthier, and more active playtime for all our children.

The OPAL Team

OPAL Play Project – Donations Wanted!

As you know, we are developing our playtimes through the OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) project. This exciting approach helps children develop creativity, teamwork and resilience by giving them access to a wide range of play opportunities.

To keep building on this, we’re looking for donations of the following items:

Medical toys (doctor/nurse kits)
Wallpaper (for crafts)
Toy tools (plastic hammers, spanners, screwdrivers, builders’ kits etc.)
Larger sized wellies (sizes 5, 6, 7)
Pop-its

If you have any of these at home and no longer need them, please drop them off at the school office. Every little contribution helps us make playtimes even more exciting!

Attendance W/E: 19/09/25

	Class	%
1	Dolphin	99.00
2	Lion	98.90
3	Tiger	98.80
4	Zebra	98.60
5	Otter	98.60
6	Kangaroo	97.50
7	Seal	97.30
8	Panda	96.80
9	Giraffe	96.70
10	Leopard	96.00
11	Meerkat	95.60
12	Turtle	95.40
13	Koala	94.10
14	Rhino	93.70
15	Bear	93.20

Team Points

Dinner Menu

We are operating a two week rolling menu. The menus, ingredients and allergen lists can be viewed on our website by clicking here.

Secondary School Admissions for September 2026

As you may be aware, the new secondary school admission round opened on Friday, 12 September 2026, for parents of current Year 6 children to apply for a secondary school (Year 7) place for September 2026.

The statutory national closing date for applications is 31 October 2025.

Applications can be made online via www.essex.gov.uk/admissions. 99% of parents in Essex applied online last year.

All of the application information is available on the website above.

The website also has a copy of the Secondary Education in Essex 2026-27 booklet which contains details of all secondary school admission policies.

Makaton: Sign of the Week

We’re excited to share our ‘Sign of the Week’— Leopard

Safeguarding

The Megacentre Community Space

Please see a list of activities that run throughout the week at the Megacentre at their new venue (78a Eastwood Road, SS7 7JP).

Please not you do not need a formal diagnosis to access any of our support.

Unless otherwise stated, sessions take place at our Community Space: 78a Eastwood Road, SS6 7JP.

Here’s a quick guide to what’s on:

Monday Mix
Exclusive soft play for SEND families – plus crafts, football, gaming room, inflatables, laser tag, and more.
Held at The Megacentre, Brook Road
No booking required.

Monday – Youth Group

Open youth group for secondary aged children, Games, Crafts & Snacks. Term time only. No booking required.

Tuesday – Punching for Purpose
Boxing-based sessions to build confidence and resilience.
5:00–5:45pm (ages 6–15)
5:45–6:30pm (ages 16+)
Suggested donation: £7
Booking required: families@megacentrerayleigh.co.uk

Wednesday – T21 Heroes (for families & children with Down Syndrome)
First Wednesday of the month: 1:00–2:30pm (under 5s)
Fortnightly sessions: 3:30–5:00pm (ages 5+) – contact us for dates

Wednesday – Midi Mix (SEND club for school-age children)
4:00–6:00pm
Activities include arts & crafts, sensory play, table football, table tennis, and outdoor games (weather permitting).

Thursday – Your Space – Youth Wellbeing Group

4:00–5:30pm

Secondary age. Referral only, please contact us if this sounds like something your child would benefit from

2nd Thursday of the Month – SEND Coffee Morning
10:00am–12:00pm
Meet other SEND parents, ask questions, and hear from guest speakers on a range of SEND topics.

4th Thursday of the Month – DLA Workshop
Support and guidance for completing Disability Living Allowance forms.

Friday – Mini Mix (Under 5s SEND Group)
A safe, welcoming non-judgemental group for families with younger children who have SEND needs – free play time, no structured activities and no music. Facilitated by experienced SEND professional.