I hope you’ve all had a wonderful week!

Year 6 Residential to St Ives
I’ve had the absolute pleasure of spending this week with our Year 6 children on their residential trip to St Ives. The children have truly amazed me with their courage and resilience. They embraced every new challenge with enthusiasm, and I know that the memories, friendships and pride from this week will stay with them for a very long time.

A huge thank you to all parents for your support in making this trip possible, and to Dan, Hannah, Kelly and Paul for being such a fantastic team while we were away.

The Value of Our Residential Trips
At Southill Primary, our residential trips are carefully planned to enhance children’s learning beyond the classroom. These experiences help develop independence, boost confidence and build social skills. The team and I are committed to offering an exceptional programme of ambitious and bespoke opportunities for all our pupils.

This week, I’ve also shared details of next year’s Year 4 residential, which will include an exciting Disney’s Hercules experience and a workshop at Pineapple Dance Studios. While in St Ives, I finalised plans for next year’s Year 6 trip, and I’m looking forward to sharing more details with you soon.

Final arrangements are also being made for:

• Year 5 Residential to St Briavels – July 2026
• Year 3 Residential to Leeson House – December 2025

All details will be communicated before the end of term.

Other Achievements This Week

Year 3 were supported by the children from Year 5 practising for Sports Day. Children loved trying out new sports they’d never tried before. Arabella said, “I love the hurdles! I’m definitely putting myself down for it next year.”

Year 5 tag ruby team won every game in a tournament full of Year 6 teams – well done!

Teaching Arrangements for September 2025

I’m pleased to confirm our teaching teams for the next academic year:

Reception: Melanie, Mrs Kench, and Lucy
Year 1: Laura, Mrs Harris and Kelly
Year 2: Emma, Emily, and Emily
Year 3: Andrea, Mrs Wallis, and Sarah
Year 4: Kirsty and Sue
Year 5: Tom and Mrs Murray
Year 6: Dan and Mrs Walkinshaw

Staff Changes
At the end of July, we will be saying goodbye to Mrs Puddick, Mrs Clark, Mrs Sharpe and Hannah. We are grateful for their dedication and the positive impact they have had at Southill Primary. We wish them all the very best in their future endeavours.

We’re delighted to welcome Kirsty, who will be joining our teaching team from September and Shelley who will be working in the office. We look forward to the fresh energy and ideas they will bring to our school community.

Music Studio Fundraising
Many of you know we’ve been raising funds for a purpose-built music studio—an initiative started by previous governors. Our current Chair of Governors, Jacqui, is forming a working party to help move this project forward. If you’d like to get involved, please contact Jacqui directly at j.pateman-jones@southill.dorset.sch.uk.

Sports Afternoons Next Week
Looking ahead, our Sports Afternoons will take place on the top field from 1:15 to 3:00pm on the following days:

• Reception, Year 1 and Year 2: Tuesday 24th
• Year 3 and Year 4: Wednesday 25th
• Year 5 and Year 6: Thursday 26th

The forecast is sunny, so please ensure your child comes with suncream applied, a hat, and a water bottle. We’ll provide fresh water refills and gazebos for shade. Refreshments will be available—cash or card accepted.

Thank you for your continued support and for making Southill Primary such a special place for our children to learn and grow.

If you’d like to give our school a review, please do so here

Have a happy weekend in the sun.

With very best wishes

Caroline