4 hours ago

18th September 2026 Newsletter – School Elections Deadline, Photographs on Monday, FOSM dates and more

A few notes from Mr Applegate

Our Key Information Sessions took place this week for each year group – you can view the slides and recordings here.
School elections are next Friday, with deadline for applying on Wednesday! Has your child applied yet?! More details here.
We’re in need of some Farm Bookings – your child will love it, and it’s free! Book here.
On Monday, we start our 8:43am bell to signify 2 minutes before gate closes. Don’t get caught out!
FOSM AGM – feel free to join us on Monday at 7:30pm at school. Find out about FOSM, and see how you can be involved!
School Photos – this coming Monday (21st Sept). See below for arrangements.

Have a great weekend, Charles.

What is my child learning this term?

This week’s homework and learning

Agents of Change

Helpful Information

Autumn 1 PE Days
PE Uniform details can be found here. Remember, football shirts, hoodies, or general day-to-day clothing are not acceptable as PE kit.
Year R – Monday, Tuesday (indoor)
Year 1 – Thursday (outdoor)
Year 2 – Tuesday (outdoor), Thursday (indoor)
Year 3 – Monday (outdoor), Friday (indoor)
Year 4 – Wednesday (indoor), Friday (outdoor)
Year 5 – Tuesday (outdoor), Thursday (outdoor)
Year 6 – Wednesday (outdoor)
Autumn 1 Forest School/Outdoor Learning Days
Forest School/Outdoor Learning starts W/B 21st September.
For the first 2 weeks the children will have Outdoor PE until Outdoor Learning sessions start.
What do children need to wear? See here.
Year 1:
1BM Mondays
1B Tuesdays
1D Fridays
Year 6:
6P Mondays
6DS Tuesdays
6E Thursdays
Bridge & Orchard:
Thursdays
Autumn After School Clubs
Clubs Finish Time: 4:10pm
Please see your confirmation email and Arbor App to confirm which clubs your child has been registered for. If there is a charge, you must pay in order for the registration process to complete.
School Access:  COLLECTION IS VIA KS1 GATE – orange star in the photo below 👇🏻
Exceptions:
Forest School – finishes at 5pm and collection is at Dandelions Gate.
Dance Live – see emails from Mrs Boyle for details and contact her here for enquiries – dancelive@stmarksce.org.uk
Young Voices – contact the team here for enquiries – youngvoices@stmarksce.org.uk
Arbor
Wraparound Care: Lions and Breakfast Club
Childcare Tax-Free Payments -further information
For parents who have been making payments for wraparound care (Breakfast Club & Lions) using the Government scheme or a similar company scheme we would like to help you to understand the process a little more now that we are getting to grips with it as well.
You pay in money to your scheme choosing St Mark’s C of E Primary School as the childcare provider (on the Government site, search by our postcode – RG22 4US).
The scheme will send the money to Hampshire County Council.
We receive the money onto our banking system.
We manually add the money onto your Arbor account.
Your Arbor balance adjusts accordingly.
As you can see, the process is much longer than before. As long as you tell us in advance that you want to pay in this way (tell us here) we can set up Arbor to accept your bookings for Lions regardless. The negative balance on Arbor will remain until such time as we have received and actioned the funds. This will be happening on a regular basis from next week.
If you use both Wraparound provisions, please email us to tell us how much you want us to credit your Breakfast Club account and how much to credit your Lions account. That would be very helpful.
How to contact your child's teacher
For matters requiring same day/urgent responses (e.g. pick up arrangements) we would prefer a telephone call please: 01256 346111 as year group emails can be missed and may not be looked at in the evenings or during the day.
Year R – yearr@stmarksce.org.uk Year R parents should no longer use the NewYearR email address as this is no longer monitored.
Year 1 – year1@stmarksce.org.uk
Year 2- year2@stmarksce.org.uk
Year 3 – year3@stmarksce.org.uk
Year 4 – year4@stmarksce.org.uk
Year 5 – year5@stmarksce.org.uk
Year 6 – year6@stmarksce.org.uk
Foodbank Friday
Many local supermarkets host a permanent donation point where people can leave the donations they purchase during their visit but we would also like to set up a station in school where children can feel that they are making a difference to help others.
We are encouraging children to occasionally bring in an item of food, which they can put in a box in our School Office.
We will update the list each week or you may prefer to download the Bank the Food App. This will update it weekly on the items we’re running low on. It’s a great app and you only need to download it and select Basingstoke Foodbank as preferred. You can also activate notifications which means you’ll get a reminder when you visit the supermarket, so you never forget to donate. It lets you know the items they most need.
Illness - should I keep my child off school?

Forest School/Outdoor Learning Clothing

Your child will need to come to school wearing their Forest School clothing on their Forest School day. If the correct kit is not worn, then your child may not be able to participate in that session.

Forest School clothing must include:

Sturdy shoes/trainers, or wellies (depending on the weather).
Waterproof coat
Long trousers and long-sleeved top
Long socks (thick long socks in winter)
Sunhat and sunscreen if needed
Hat, scarf, gloves in winter

Please also provide a spare set of clothes (including pants and socks) and a small towel in a separate plastic bag.

This Monday – Individual Photographs

Photographs of every individual child will be taken on the morning of Monday 21st September.

Children must wear their white OR navy polo shirts and green St Mark’s jumpers or cardigans.

What about children who have PE or Forest School/Outdoor Learning?

Photos are head and shoulders only, please send your child in wearing PE kit or Forest School attire on their lower halves.

The children will come home with a code for you to preview and order the photo. The website for ordering from Cardwell and Simons is here.

Applying for a place at Secondary School

Please see here for information regarding applications for secondary school.

Save the Date: Wednesday 30th September 8:45-10:15am

We will be holding an OPAL Experience Morning, where you will have a chance to learn more about OPAL, understand why play is so important for children’s development, and most importantly, join your child in their playtime adventures! There will be further events held later in the year so please don’t worry if you can’t make this date. More information to follow on Monday via email.

This week in worship…

Music of the Week

⭐Weekly Achievement and Attendance ⭐

⭐St Mark’s Shout Outs ⭐

Over the summer, Amelia C from 5M has taken part in 42 performances as Child of Vulgaria in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang staged by the Watermill Theatre in Newbury. She’s loved every minute on stage sharing her love and enthusiasm for theatre, and backstage nurturing friendships with other young performers. Wow Amelia! What an amazing achievement!

Last weekend, Stevie and Maxie participated in a local community litter picking event. They dedicated an hour and a half of their morning to help pick up litter around Beggarwood park.

Last year, Stevie was elected as an Eco Warrior for the Eco Committee at St Mark’s and has thoroughly enjoyed it. During our walk to school this past week, she saw a poster for the event and jumped at the opportunity to support our local community and help make our public spaces cleaner and safer for everyone. She believed it was her duty as a previous Eco Warrior to help!

Well done Stevie and Maxie! This is so lovely to hear and we are all very proud of you.