Newsletters

We believe that our children should have the aspiration and opportunity to ‘Live life in all its fullness’ and ‘Shine like stars in the sky’.
 
A BIG THANK YOU…
…from all the staff for all the goodies for the staffroom which have kept us going over the last few weeks of the term!  Thank you also for the gifts, kind words and good wishes for the summer break.  It has been a busy and successful year – we have appreciated the support from all our families and would like to wish everyone a fun-filled, happy holiday.
 
WELLBEING WALK
We had the perfect end to the term yesterday with a lovely walk and picnic down by the river.  Huge thanks to Joey and Evie, our Wellbeing Ambassadors (as well as Kitty in her role as Y6 School Councillor) who worked together to organise the day.  We were able to tick off all five ways to wellbeing in one way or another.  It was lovely to see how much the children enjoyed being out and about, really appreciating the beautiful countryside right here on our doorstep.  Some children even expressed how proud they felt of themselves with comments such as “This has been the longest walk I have done and I feel really proud of myself!”  Many are keen to return to see how the landscape changes through the seasons.
 
Reminders…
EARLY FINISH
Just a quick reminder that school closes at the earlier time of 2pm today.

Coming up…
School reopens for children on Tuesday 8^th September. Details of our drop-in event to follow…
 
News from the wider community
MESSAGES FROM THE FRIENDS PTA GROUP
Many thanks for all the donations of second-hand uniform.  It is not too late to claim items for a donation.  If you would prefer to browse online, please see the link below:
Search results – Uniformerly 
This will take you to a website that hosts uniform sales listings.  This means that parents can sign up, request to buy the item and then it sends an email to the Friends team so we can arrange collection.  
NEWS FROM THE BENEFICE
Please see below for all the latest from the parishes in our community:

  -Pew News wc 19726.pdf-  

ANYONE FOR TENNIS?
West Tanfield Tennis Club would like to offer children at St Nicholas Primary School the opportunity to play tennis, at no charge, on Friday afternoons during the school holidays. We intend to open the courts from 3pm until 5pm on 4 x Friday afternoons, from the 31st July until the 21st August. The arrangement is that children can play providing they come with a parent/adult who will be responsible for their children’s behaviour whilst they are at the club. This year the club will provide coaching of the children whilst they are on the court. Also, children may bring a brother, sister or relative who is under twelve but who does not attend St Nicholas School. Should more turn up than there is court space then the coach will rotate the children as appropriate.

SUMMER READING CHALLENGE
This year’s Summer Reading Challenge is running until Saturday 12 September 2026.
Turn up the volume on reading this summer as North Yorkshire Libraries, in partnership with The Reading Agency, invite children to discover the joy of reading through Read to the Beat! - the music themed Summer Reading Challenge for 2026.
Click below to find out about launch events in libraries tomorrow:
Summer Reading Challenge | North Yorkshire Council  HARROGATE AND DISTRICT COMMUNITY ACTION It is also available as a link on the HADCA website:
https://hadca.org.uk/news/free-low-cost-summer-activities-harrogate-district-2026
 
  -HADCA-Summer-Activities-2026-FREE-low-cost-Harrogate-District-web.pdf-  

One activity just received and so on the HADCA website but not the attached listing is a FEAST activity at Holy Trinity Church. Details are on the attached flier. There are fully funded places with food available to families who qualify for benefits related free school meals and paid for places.    
If you know of any free/ low-cost events or activities we could add to the list, please let us know by emailing  hadca@hadca.org.uk so they can be added to the online version of the list.
MUSIC LESSONS IN SCHOOL
Is your child interested in learning an instrument?
Mrs Harris has a few spaces available for instrumental lessons starting in September. Piano lessons are offered from Year 2, and ukulele, recorder or singing from Reception. Lessons can be individual 20 minutes (£11/week paid half termly) or group (£8/week) where a suitable group is available. 
Please email Mrs Harris directly on bryonyharris1@gmail.com if you are interested. 
 
 
Safeguarding, Health and Wellbeing Updates
FREE SCHOOL MEALS…
…are being expanded from September:
How do you know if your family is eligible and how to apply?
From September 2026 the Department for Education is extending entitlement to free school meals to include all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit. Although eligibility will be granted to all Universal Credit recipients, it is important to note that families do still need to apply to receive the meals.
If your child is currently registered as being in receipt of free school meals through North Yorkshire Council, you DO NOT need to reapply, as your child’s eligibility to continue receiving this provision will be automatically reassessed before September 2026. Where your child is moving to a school located outside of North Yorkshire, then you will need to reapply for this provision through the new authority/school.
Please be aware that any previous protections which applied to children already in receipt of free school meals will no longer apply. Eligibility will be based on whether you are in receipt of any of the benefits, as shown below:
•         Universal Credit
•         Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
•         Support under Part 6 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
•         The Guarantee element of Pension Credit
From September 2026 there will be 2 categories of eligibility for free school meals:
Targeted FSM: this covers children in households in receipt of Universal Credit with annual household earnings of £7,400 or less. These children will attract pupil premium and other disadvantage funding for their schools. Other education entitlements, such as the holiday activities and food programme (HAF) and the ‘extended rights’ element of school travel assistance, will be based on targeted free school meals.
Expanded FSM: this covers children who are in households receiving Universal Credit with annual household earnings exceeding £7,400. Children will be entitled to free school meals only.
For those wanting to apply, applications can be made through the council website www.northyorks.gov.uk/freeschoolmeals with effect from June.