Dear Families

Peyton House - Easter Egg Raffle in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust

We are in the process of running a fundraising raffle for the Teenage Cancer Trust. We are asking if parents might be able to donate Easter Eggs as prizes for the raffle. If you feel you can add an Easter egg or 2 onto your weekly shop and donate it to be raffled, we would be very grateful. Any donations can be brought to the main reception any time between now and Friday 4th April. Thanks in advance for your support.

We are selling tickets to students every morning, break and lunchtime. Tickets are 25p each or £1 for 5.

Parent Governor Vacancy

Further to the separate earlier. We have vacancies for two parent governors.  Please see the link below for further information wwwtgschool.net/news/parent-governor-vacancies-1

Attendance

We have seen some real improvements this year with student attendance to school.

  • School Attendance is above Suffolk and National Averages for Secondary Schools

  • Persistent Absentee levels are below National Averages for Secondary Schools

  • We have the highest attendance within our Trust Secondary Schools where students have to use buses and public transport

Thank you for supporting the school community and your children with their attendance.  Despite these positives, we still aspire to improve attendance for the benefit of our students' futures.  National research released last  week again identifies the correlation between attendance and academic performance / salaries achieved within the working world.

We will therefore continue to work on supporting all students and families in this area.  Over the next few weeks we will be communicating with families in a variety of supportive ways to ensure we keep a focus on attendance and student achievement.  There will also be an attendance competition after Easter, full details will be shared next week.  Please review our website over the coming weeks for information about this and other key attendance messages.  Attendance | Thomas Gainsborough School

Free School Meals

Due to changes in the Free School Meal system, any families who believe that their children are entitled to Free School Meals, should sign up & ideally before 1st April 2025. If you have any questions about your child’s eligibility please phone 0345 606 6067 or email freeschoolmeals@suffolk.gov.uk

www.suffolk.gov.uk/children-families-and-learning/schools//apply-for-free-school-meals

Yes to the Prom Dress Event - Friday April 25th

The Stanway School in Colchester are holding their last event at Stanway School on Friday 25th April from 3:30-7.00pm. 

There are still new dresses coming in.

Free parking, refreshments available, payments via cash or card and take the dress away on the day.

Your School Photograph is Ready!

Vancols Photographers are pleased to confirm that the School Photographs are ready to view using the QR code on your proof card.

If you have already scanned the QR code on the Proof and registered you will receive an auto email notification.

If you have not done it yet, don’t panic, you can still view it by scanning the QR code on your Proof and following the instructions.

If by chance you have not received your Proof or it has been lost you can call Vancols Parent Line on 01206 273711, for class photos you will need the school number. For individual photographs you will need the pupil’s admission number from the school database.

The website for these codes is www.getphotos.co.uk

The online cut-off date for orders to be placed for free postage back to the school is 1st April 2025

Dance to the Music - At Dance East!

For the first time ever, this year's annual dance show is taking place at Dance East! It is a really exciting opportunity for our dancers to perform in a theatre environment. We have 60 students from every year group- Y7 through to Y13- performing a combination of examination work, competition pieces and general performance pieces.

The show is on Wednesday 14th May starting at 7:30pm. Tickets cost £6.50

www.tgschool.net/news/dance-to-the-music

Sudbury Night Hub

The night hub is offering a safe place for students with autism and SEND needs. A place to socialise and make friends find out more at www.tgschool.net/news/sudbury-night-hub and https://leadinglives.org.uk/opportunities-for-young-people/ 

20 shorter reads for teenagers

At TGS we are continually promoting the joy of reading. The news article contains a link to Author Anthony McGowna’s list of books which are not intimidatingly long and which we are sure students will enjoy.

www.tgschool.net/news/20-shorter-reads-for-teenagers

Managing Exam Stress - Support for Students & Families

The next three months can be challenging for parents of students in Year 11 and 13. Online courses for families & students are available. www.tgschool.net/news/exam-pressure-workshops-for-students-families

Child & Adolescent Mental Health - Parent Workshops

Free virtual workshops from NHS Norfolk & Suffolk  ww.tgschool.net/news/child-adolescent-mental-health-parent-workshops

Childhood Neurodivergence Workshops for families

We are delighted to publicise some free virtual workshops on Childhood Neurodivergence to support families:

www.tgschool.net/news/childhood-neurodivergence-workshops 

Government Curriculum Review 

If you are interested in sharing your views regarding climate change and how it should be taught follow the link below:

https://www.globalactionplan.org.uk/generation-action

Easter Activities from Explore Outdoor & Abbeycroft

Does your child receive free school meals?

If your child get means tested free school dinners, then you can apply for a range of free activities for your family and children. These sessions are funded through Suffolk County Council HAF programme.

To book an activity visit: www.abbeycroft.org.uk/HAF if you need any help booking speak to your school office or email HAF@acleisure.com

Free sessions are primarily for children entitled to Means Tested Free School Meals

www.tgschool.net/news/easter-activities-from-explore-outdoor-abbeycroft

Suffolk Libraries  Blank Page Project

Suffolk Libraries’ Blank Page Project is back for Easter! Get involved with FREE creative workshops for 10-16 year olds in the library hosted by local artists – a great opportunity to learn something new and take your creative projects home with you! There are some exciting workshops at Great Cornard and Sudbury libraries.

Visit the Suffolk Libraries website to find out more and book your spot: 

www.suffolklibraries.co.uk/resources/the-blank-page-project