Mather Street Primary School

Summer Term

Welcome back for the final half term of this school year. We have many events planned, which means it will be a very busy few weeks.

The Year 1 children will be taking the phonics screening test along with a few of the Year 2 children. The Year 4 children will be taking the Multiplication Check and showing off their knowledge of the Times Tables. 

Please remember that we expect all the children to be in classrooms ready to learn at 8:50am and collected promptly by a responsible adult at 3:20pm. 

The last day of the school year is Thursday 24th July 2025. Some local schools may finish a few days earlier than Mather Street because we had two weeks holiday at half term. All schools are open for the same number of days each year so it is fair overall, 

Uniform

We expect all our children to be smartly dressed in full school uniform. This includes school trousers - not tracksuit bottoms or casual trousers - and black footwear. If you would like anything from the 'bargain box', please ask the office staff. 

Please remember that children are not allowed to wear make-up in school. We recommend that long hair is tied back with a bobble. Large hair bows are not allowed. 

Traffic

There is often a lot of traffic congestion outside school. Please be patient and consider other drivers and the neighbours. We have had a few near-misses recently and we need to keep everyone safe. 

If your child is due to start reception in September 2025, the closing date for applications is January 15th 2025. Applications can be made through the Oldham Council website. 
If you would like your child to attend nursery, please call in at the school office and put your child's name on the list. 

Punctuality and attendance. 

The new guidelines from the DfE have now come into effect. The school's attendance policy has been updated to reflect the changes. Remember - where parents decide to have their child registered at school, they have an additional legal duty to ensure their child attends that school regularly. This means their child must attend every day that the school is open, except in a small number of allowable circumstances such as being too ill to attend or being given permission for an absence in advance from the school. 

Please see the information below from Oldham Council

Admission arrangements for reception - September 2025 - parents need to apply for a reception place by January 2025

Please see the attached information about help and support for families - please don't hesitate to contact school if you need additional support. 

School Calendar 2024/25 and 2025/26

Current Arrangements

Here are some of the arrangements we have in place to help to keep everyone safe. 

 Road safety

• Parking space around school is very limited. Please avoid parking on the pavement at the entrance to school. For the safety of all the children, please be patient and show consideration to the neighbours and other drivers.

 Dogs

• Dogs are not allowed on the school premises.

 Uniform

• Children need to come to school, smartly dressed, in full school uniform. 

 Attendance and Punctuality

• The current guidance is very clear that all children should attend school every day. Oldham Council will issue fixed penalty notices where attendance at school is not good enough. Please ensure that your child arrives at school on time and is collected promptly at 3:20pm.

 Coronavirus symptoms

• If your child or a member of your household is displaying coronavirus symptoms, please follow government guidance and keep school informed.

Morning – children can enter school from 8:45am and need to be in class by 8:50am.

• Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6 – drop children off at the office gate.
• Children will walk to the junior playground and enter school as directed by staff.  
• Year 1 and Year 2 – drop children off at the pylon car park gate.
• Children will walk to the infant playground and enter school as directed by staff.  
• Reception and Nursery – drop children off at the pavement gate.

 Collection (Nursery 12 noon; Reception 3:20pm)

• Nursery and reception – collect from the pavement gate

 Gates will be open from 3:05pm

• Year 1 and Year 2 – wait for your children on the infant playground. Staff will bring the children to you.  
• Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6 – wait for your children on the junior playground. Staff will bring the children to you.

Families where the children are in different key stages. - School staff will direct Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6 children to the infant playground to meet their parents. (If there is a sibling in reception, collect the older children first.)

 Enquiries

• Please contact school by telephone, text or e mail where possible.
• If you need to speak to someone in the office, please be prepared to queue.
• If you need to contact your child’s teacher, please wait until all the children have left the playground at the end of the day to speak to the teacher or get in touch by e mail or telephone and they will get back in touch with you.

 Thank you for your continued support,

Home Learning

 Please remind your children to stay safe online. There are lots of activities on our E-Safety page to help you. 

50 Things to Do ...

Follow the link to find a menu of exciting activities for families in Oldham with young children.

There are lots of suggestions for how to have fun and learn at the same time.