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Headteacher's Message -
Good Afternoon Parents/Carers,
I hope this newsletter finds you well and apologies for the slight delay in delivery!
I am very pleased to announce that the House Captains were announced last week, and that they have already been supporting staff and the School Ambassadors with various tasks around the school, including the House Sponsored Walk and prospective parent tours.
| House | House Captain 1 | House Captain 2 |
| Berkeley | Amelia | Finn |
| Shannon | Reid | Isobel |
| Portland | Thomas | Annie |
| Fletcher | Bertie | Lucia |
| School Council | |||
| Year 6 | Ashley Ambassadors | ||
| Isla | Louis |
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| Year 2 | Fox | Badger | Otter |
| Lily R | Cleo M | Erin M | |
| Year 3 | Robin | Woodpecker | Skylark |
| Daniel V and Vivi | Emer | Jack B | |
| Year 4 | Swan | Kingfisher | Heron |
| Jaime B | Elliot | Ella B | |
| Year 5 | Owl | Falcon | Kestrel |
| Jonny M | Griff | Archie B | |
| Year 6 | Eagle | Osprey | Hawk |
| Elyssia | Bella D | Rory S | |
At the end of September, the children in Year 4 spent an enjoyable three days at Sayers Croft. The residential was a huge success due to Mrs Ready’s meticulous organisation – thank you! It was lovely to see the children enthusiastically participating in the different activities on the grounds of Sayers Croft, even when it was pouring down with rain. Their behaviour was exemplary, and we were really impressed with each of them. Well done Year 4! Finally, I would like to say a special ‘Thank you’ to all the members of staff who volunteered their time to accompany the children – these experiences would not take place without you.
Our Harvest Services last week were really enjoyable and linked to our school value ‘Care’. Thank you to the faith ambassadors for writing and leading the services. The children read, recited their poems and sang beautifully. Thank you for the Harvest donations - the food hampers will be delivered to Rentstart this week.
We continue to focus on our relationship and behaviour policy with the children, supporting them with making positive choices when they are learning in the classroom, at playtime or as they arrive/leave school. On occasions, we understand that children may not make the right choice but in line with our restorative approach we do talk with the children about who may have been affected by their behaviour choice and possible logical consequences.
This week, we have our first parent consultation evenings of the year which provide time for you and the classteacher to discuss how your child has settled and their progress. The relationship between school and home is really important and by working together we can ensure your child is successful at school. If you haven’t booked an appointment, please contact the school office.
Kind Regards
Mrs Ratcliff
EBSNA - Emotionally-based school for non-attendance
We have recently been developing our approach to support children who are impacted by emotionally-based school non-attendance. As part of this approach, both our teaching team and support staff received an input during a professional development session to empower them to support these children and their families.
School Lunches -
The Autumn/Winter 2024/25 menu, is here: Menu
If your child/ren normally has a school meal, please can we remind you to order a school meal in advance.
Ordering closes on the Friday before and meals cannot be ordered after this time.
Should you forget to book a meal for your child/ren, we will call you and you will be required to bring in a packed lunch for your child going forward. You will not be able to book a meal on the day.
The current cost of a school meal is £2.75 for those children in KS2. Please ensure that payments are kept up to date at all times.
Payment should be made on-line via www.scopay.com/ashley We do not accept cash or cheques. our registration code for Scopay will have been sent home with your child. This can also be obtained from the school office.
PLAYTIME SNACKS REMINDER -
In the juniors, playtime snacks should be a piece of fruit or vegetable. This helps to reduce our packaging waste and contributes to the children's 5 a day. Pots of chopped up fruit or vegetable sticks are ideal (not fruit winders). Infants still continue receive their free fruit or vegetable daily. The NHS Change4Life website has some great ideas for inspiration for a healthy packed lunch.
Please click on the link to find out more: https://www.nhs.uk/change4life/recipes/healthier-lunchboxes
REMINDER: We are a NUT, KIWI FRUIT and SEASAME free school. Please do not bring in any products containing these ingredients.
The Past Fortnight -
Year 6
On Monday, Year 6 met a very special, 101 year old. Cameron's Great Grand-dad, John Davies, came in to speak to the children about his experiences during the war. Being too young to sign up with the army (for some excitement!), John joined the Merchant Navy instead and travelled the world, helping to transport troops and bring food back to Britain. When asked what he missed most about being at sea, John said, "My family." What an incredible experience for Year 6 who are learning about life on the Home Front. Thank you, John, it was a privilege to hear your story.
- Miss Bardel 
Year 5
This week, Y5 have been writing their non-chronological reports on the River Thames. We used iPads to research various topics such as wildlife, the journey of the river, sports/activities, the history and so much more. Through our research, we learned how many different water sports can be done along the Thames along with learning about the various cities the river passes through. We then constructed our reports and added images to represent what we wrote about.
- Miss Courtney 
Year 4 - Sayers Croft
Year 4 had a fantastic time at Sayers Croft last week and learnt many new skills including how to make their own bed, follow a map with orienteering and work as a team to build a shelter. It was a fantastic few days for all of us and it was amazing to see smiling faces and everyone embracing lots of new experiences! Some of the favourite activities were definitely the blindfold trail, the earth walk, exploring the Iron Age roundhouse and sleeping in a dormitory on bunk beds with our friends! By the time we got home, we were all exhausted but the memories we made will certainly be remembered forever!
- Mrs Ready
Year 3
This week Year 3 enjoyed cooking Ashley grown vegetables in the big soup cook. They enjoyed chopping beetroot for the chocolate brownies and mixing together different ingredients to create the delicious brownies and soup. Big thank you to Mrs. Winstanley-Fisher for supporting Y3 in this Harvest project.
-Miss Williams
Year 2
This week Year 2 have been printing their Yoga poses which they have drawn in the style of Keith Haring. We have been using our Yoga poses from PE sessions as inspiration for this unit
- Mrs Van Der Schaff
Reception
Reception have been learning about harvest this week. Some of the children have had a go at harvesting tomatoes, beetroot, rhubarb and our pumpkin. They enjoyed sharing this with Year 1 in the Harvest celebration assembly. We will continue to learn about caring for crops throughout the year and will use our outside garden to help us.
-Miss Key
Hampton School Maths Wizard Competition
Last week, Sophie, Jake, Jacob and Anya, took part in the Hampton School Maths Wizard Competition. These four budding mathematicians had their mathematical knowledge put to the test, tackling a range of tricky numerical puzzles. They took part in five rounds of problems ranging from the Always, Sometimes, Never round to Target. In the Symbols round, numbers were disguised as symbols and pupils were challenged to work out which symbols represented a particular digit. The competition culminated in a final round Group Challenge, in which the pupils had to work together to solve some fiendishly difficult maths problems. The Ashley Team did incredibly well coming 6th out of 21 schools! Well done! Thank you to the parents for taking their children and for Mrs Attwood-Smith for accompanying the team.
If your child would like to challenge themselves and complete some challenging maths problems, Hampton School provide weekly challenges on their website. https://hamptonschool.org.uk/admissions/maths-wizard/
-Miss Sen
House Sponsored Walk -
Ashley really enjoyed the House walk on Thursday and it was brilliant to see how each year group supported each other to achieve their laps. Luckily we stayed dry and warm. Thank you to all the parents who completed sponsorship forms and paid the sponsorship money on ScoPay. There is still time to donate. I look forward to showing you what we were able to purchase.
-Miss Williams
Gardening News -
Year 3 - Ashley Big Food Share and Harvest
Following the success last year in Yr3's food share, we went bigger and better this Autumn. Whilst in Year 2, the children planted seeds and bulbs as part of their learning, looking after and successfully harvesting a couple of weeks ago. Working together on Thursday, they created the tastiest, most nutritious root vegetable soup and beetroot brownies. This progression of learning is our 'Plot to Plate' at its best! We do hope the skills they have learned over the last year will encourage them to share with families at home. Our Big Food Share sale raised £101 towards our polytunnel - thank you to all parents who donated we hope you enjoyed the feast!
We are very excited to announce we have just achieved our RHS Level 3 Schools Award. It came in the post this week along with a book, some seeds for next season and a £50 plant voucher. Level 4 next1
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WELL DONE -
WELL DONE to Isabel (Y3) and Jacob (Y5) took part in a kids triathlon at Xcel. Isabel came 1st in her age group and Jacob came 3rd. 
Freya (Y4) has chopped off her hair so that it can be donated to The Little Princess Trust. They will use it to make a wig for a young person experiencing the devastating effect of hair loss Freya managed to donate 12” of hair and has so far raised over £500! CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR EFFORTS FREYA
Bertie (Y6) competed at British Tumbling Championships last weekend. He managed to complete a new 'end skill'- a double twist which is the first time he's done it in competition. What a amazing achievement Bertie!
