Somersham Primary School

About Our School : What's New Archive

20th December 2007

Christmas Cheer

Children’s stage shows create a real song and dance!

Autumn term 2007 has finished with a seasonal flourish as the children entertained audiences of parents, relations and members of the local community. Children from Early Years and Key Stage 1 retold the Nativity Story in the form of a musical journey back in time – they had to pack up well and dress warmly. Alice described the show, ‘It’s a Party’ as ‘loads of fun and the parents laughed all the time!’

A Christmas extravaganza was served up by children in Years 5 & 6. ‘The X-mas Factor’ featured popular television talent shows with a feast of singing, dancing, comedy and even some magic! Scripted almost entirely by the children, it really proved that talent is alive and kicking at Somersham School! James and Jordan from Year 4 were full of praise for the children’s comedy and singing: ‘We liked the contestants’ confidence – they were very brave to stand up and perform in front of all the children. It was great fun.’

Parents and visitors packed the hall for two performances of each show, and were enthusiastic in their appreciation of the children’s efforts and also generous in supporting a collection for the school’s Autumn term charity, Milton Children’s Hospice, raising over £360.00. We will present a cheque for the total amount raised to Sally Cassels from the hospice during a whole school assembly early next term.

Relive the magic on DVD

A DVD of both performances will be available from the school office shortly. You can see a trailer of the shows by clicking here. Thanks as ever to Daniel Bates and Victoire Press for their time and efforts in editing and producing the show on DVD.

2 December 2007

Solar Somersham

Bringing power to all our children – a truly ground-breaking project

Chair of the school’s governing body, Daniel Bates, explains:

Our environmental impact on this planet has become one of the most important challenges that we all need to face in the years ahead, and it clearly affects the future safety and welfare of our children. I am proud that the school is already taking steps to reduce its environmental impact and encourage diversity – through the use of water butts around the school and the development of the wildlife and garden area. The children are learning about the importance of saving electricity, reusing and recycling paper and other resources, as well as cultivating and enjoying vegetables and fruit grown in the new school garden.

But this is just the start! I am excited to announce that the governing body and the school staff and children are applying to the government’s Low Carbon Buildings Project (Phase 2) to win funding for the commissioning of a photovoltaic (PV) solar power installation at the school. Here is a fantastic opportunity to really demonstrate our collective commitment to renewable energy, and show again the enthusiasm and pioneering nature of our school’s staff and children.

While solar power is unlikely to provide enough energy to satisfy the school’s entire demand, it would mean a very significant reduction in our carbon footprint. A PV installation would also mean that we could sell electricity back to the National Grid at times when we weren’t using it, such as during the long and sunny summer break. This would therefore provide the financial benefit of reducing the school’s overall electricity bill – one of the costs set to rise the fastest over the next few years – and reduce the pressure on an already extremely overstretched school budget.

The teaching and support staff are enthusiastic about developing suitable curriculum resources so that the children can explore the science behind renewable power, the impact of global warming, and about finding new ways to conserve and harness energy, while limiting the damaging environmental effects of waste disposal. To raise awareness of all of these issues will need a major effort, not only within the school, but also amongst parents and the local community. We have already formed links with a school in Cambridge that has already implemented solar power, and they have kindly invited our school’s eco-council to visit them to discuss the project’s impact, and to see the panels first hand.

Regular bulletins of our progress will appear in the school’s newsletter and online. (A more detailed version of this statement can be found in the Governors section.)

New Children's Work and Class Pictures

We have now updated the class pictures - thanks again to Kidmobile Photography for the amazing pictures which show the children representing different countries from around the world. The children's classpages showing work from the start of the Autumn term are also available on each class page. To see the pictures and the work visit the Look at Our Work section.

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