Penguins (Nursery) are dropped off at the Nursery Door (through the grassy area) between 8.50 and 9.00am.  At 3.30pm, the children are collected from the same door.  At lunchtime, all drop offs and pick ups will be through the office.

Ladybirds are dropped off and collected at their door, through the grassy area.

Bears are dropped off at their door, at the top of the ramp next to the climbing wall.

Zebras and Tigers are dropped off and collected under the big shelter at the Key Stage 1 door.

Giraffes, Leopards and Crocodiles are dropped off and collected at the Key Stage 2 door.

If a child arrives late for any reason they should be brought to the main entrance and ‘signed in’ at the office.  If a child is taken out of school before the end of the school day, they should be collected from the main entrance and ‘signed out’.

Absences require authorisation from the school.  Therefore it is necessary for school to be informed of a child’s absence as soon as possible.  If a child is absent and the school has not been informed then the school will contact you directly during the morning of the first day of absence. 

Healthy eating is actively encouraged and promoted through the school curriculum.  The school offers a school meal service from Aspens providing a choice of three main courses, salad, vegetables and three desserts consisting of yogurt, fruit or a traditional pudding.

If you would like your child to have a hot school meal or sandwich lunch option then this can be paid for via Parent Pay at the beginning of the week.  The current price of a school meal is £2.40 per day. Aspens have developed the Aspens App which will enable you to read it with just a couple of presses on your smartphone. It’s simple enough – just search for the app at the App Store or Google Play, install, add the unique PIN relating to your particular school and you will be able to view the current menu. The pin is: 27440754

All children in the early years and key stage one, ie, their first three years of formal education, are entitled to a universal free school meal. If your child is entitled to a free school meal under the Pupil Premium then it is still important that you register for this as the school receives extra money in its budget.  The link to follow is:

APPLY ONLINE

On the very rare occasions when your child has left home without eating their breakfast, for what ever reason, it is important that you let us know as this can affect their concentration. We have a breakfast club before school and a toast trolley at morning break time.

Your child's brain needs water during the day to keep it hydrated. The Governing Body provides each child with a water bottle at the start of each year.  This remains in school, so that your child has access to water throughout the day.

Morning Break - Toast

All children in EYFS and Key Stage One are provided with a piece of fruit each day.  The older children children can bring fruit or a vegetable snack from home to eat at playtime if they want to.

The school kitchen provides toast that can be purchased by all children during the morning break (except nursery, and the staff provide the snack).  Please send £1 in a named envelope on a Monday, and this ensures your child can have toast every day.

School dinners

Payment for school dinner is on Parent Pay.  We ask parents to settle their Parent Pay account each week.

The school kitchen take the dinner numbers each day, so make sure your child lets their teacher know whether they are having a school dinner or have brought their own lunchbox.  Please continue to help your child use cutlery correctly so that they are able to cut their own food with increasing dexterity.

Packed Lunches

Some children bring packed lunches from home which are eaten in the dining hall.  As we are a healthy school it is important that the food provided reflects this.  Ideally lunch boxes should contain: a drink of water or squash in a non-glass container; a sandwich or something savoury such as a slice of pizza, a sausage or a small pie; some prepared vegetables like carrot or cucumber; a yogurt; and a piece of fruit.  Treats like crisps, biscuits and cakes should be restricted to two or three times a week and should not be a regular part of the lunch box.

There are several websites that can help you with ideas for packed lunches or ask at the office and we will support you as best we can.

We asked parents about what they thought we were doing well.

"The children are a credit to the school and the staff."

"My son is well motivated by himself and  others around him. I believe that this is due to good quality teaching and positive reinforcement. St Mary's is quick to celebrate achievement and effort made."

"my child's kind and selfless behaviour is a direct result of you and your teaching at St Mary's - my good samaritan"