Friday 29^th August 2025

New School Year 2025-2026

Dear Parents/Carers,

It has been a wonderful first week of the academic year for all pupils at Oaklands. We have been thrilled to see children settling into their classes so smoothly, getting to know the staff and meeting their new peer groups. Attendance this week has been very good. Thank-you for preparing children well and getting them on the bus/taxi or ready in the car to arrive at 8.45am.

We have welcomed new children across the Nurture, Willow and Elm pathways who have all been smiling and playing alongside their peers already. We are very proud of the way in which they have started their new school! Welcome also to our new families, who we look forward to getting to know.

This term, all children will be exploring a variety of learning experiences from reading traditional tales and exploring a forest environment in our immersive room, to preparing food and practicing valuable life skills. There will also be whole school Big Days about the Lights and Sound, Magnetism and floating and sinking

as well as fund raising for Children in Need. We look forward to learning about Diwali just before half term.

Diary Dates: Attached to this letter, you will find diary dates for the first half of the school year. We hope this will be helpful for you to plan ahead. Some dates are for parents/carers to join us in school - we look forward to welcoming you. Parents workshops are open for all parents to join us and Vicky Bland will send out reminders about these on ClassDojo.

During the summer break there have been a number of improvements made to our school environment. We have had a fantastic new canopy area created outside three of our classrooms in the Willow pathway providing much needed additional learning spaces that can be used all year round. We have also had a barefoot walk created in our spinney area. There are many proven benefits to barefoot walking for autistic pupils, and for all of our children, this will provide a stimulating new way to widen their world through experiencing new textures outdoors. In addition, there are other exciting new areas to explore in the spinney; a mud kitchen, digging area, herb garden and a new swing!

Transport: The car park arrangements have worked smoothly again this week. Thank-you to parents who bring your children. We appreciate your patience and understanding, supporting us to keep everyone safe at the start and end of each day. The buses and taxis have also arrived in good time. Whilst we do not co-ordinate the bus or taxi transport (it is a city council service), if you experience any issues and would like our support, please do not hesitate to call the school office.

Communication: Please do continue to check Class Dojo and the school website for any updates. New parents/carers should have been sent a link by email to join Class Dojo. You receive regular updates about your child’s activities and progress through Class Dojo and it also gives you the facility to message the class team if you need to let them know anything. There is a translate facility if this is helpful to you. If you need any support or further information about this, please contact the office.

You can also find us on You Tube, Facebook & Twitter

You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoBZ9amxpU6NJ3OM9_dPioA

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OaklandsSchoolLeicester/

Twitter: @OaklandsSchool_ 

Oaklands School Lettings: Oaklands has a wide range of spaces that we let out to Local Community Groups. This supports us with revenue that we can then put back into buying teaching and learning resources. If you are aware of any groups or societies in the local community who are looking for a venue, please do ask them to check out our school website for the Lettings Policy for more details or call our school office on 0116 2415921 to speak to Ashleigh Haines, our School Business Manager

Family Support Worker: Mala Chohan is our family support worker. She is a valued member of the Oaklands team who can support parents/carers with advice on a whole range of issues including DLA, other benefits, grants and financial support, as well as housing and community groups. If you would like to speak to Mala, she can be contacted through the school office. Mala works Monday-Thursday 10am-2pm and Friday 10-1pm

If you have any questions, queries or comments, please do not hesitate to get in touch through Class Dojo or the school office. We look forward to seeing every child grow and progress in their learning this term. They are all a joy to work with!

Many thanks for your support,

Regards

Sarah

Sarah Osborne (Headteacher)