School Life
Our gates open at 8.45am. At this time the teachers will be in the playgrounds to greet their classes and will take the children straight in to start learning.
Children can come into school any time between 8.45am and 9.00am and can go straight to class.
All children enter via the main gates on Scawen Road.
We will shut the gates at 9.00am and expect all children to be in school by then.
If your child is late (and we really hope they aren’t!) they will need to come through the main entrance and will be registered by a member of the office team and then taken to class.
Please make every effort to be on time for school as children feel more settled and are able to make more progress if they come in with their friends and start the day with everyone else.
The day finishes at 3.30pm for all children.
An average week for all children equates to 32.5 hours.
Attendance and Punctuality
It is your legal responsibility, as parent or carer, to make sure your children are in school each day and on time. Their progress will be adversely affected by absence or lateness.
It is vital that the school is informed on the first day of absence why your child is away and when they will return.
Holidays in term time are strongly discouraged due to the 13 weeks that children are already given as holiday time. If you believe the circumstances are exceptional you may apply for permission to take your child out of school during term time. All applications must be made in advance and in writing. Forms can be requested from the office. No holiday will be granted retrospectively and children's absence will be unauthorised.
Persistent absence and lateness is addressed by the Attendance and Welfare officer from Lewisham.
attendance service information leaflet.pdf
Cycle Rack
There are lots of cycle and scooter racks in the playground. Bicycles must be left securely and school can not be responsible for them.
Valuables
We ask that valuables are not brought into school. All mobile phones brought to school must be left with the office staff.
Medicines
Any medicines brought into school should be labelled with the child's name and handed in at the office by an adult. We will then ask you to fill out a form to ensure we know exactly when to administer the medicine.
Please note we can only administer medicines that are prescribed by a doctor and that are required to be taken 4 x a day or at a specific time of day. Please ask in the office if you have any queries.
Children who need asthma pumps need to have a written plan to accompany these. Please ask in the office for details.
Operation Encompass
Twin Oaks Primary School is an Operation Encompass school
Operation Encompass reports to schools, prior to the start of the next school day, when a child or young person has been exposed to, or involved in, any domestic incident where the police have been called. We know that children can be significantly physically or emotionally harmed when this is the case and the information received will be used to make sure the right support is available for children and their families.
Operation Encompass will ensure that a member of the school staff, known as a Designated Safeguarding Lead, is trained to allow them to liaise with the police and to use the information that has been shared, in confidence, while ensuring that the school is able to make provision for possible difficulties experienced by children, or their families, who have been involved in, or exposed to, a domestic abuse incident.
We are keen to offer the best support possible to all our pupils and we believe this will be extremely beneficial for all those involved.
If you have any concerns or questions then please contact one of our school’s Designated Safeguarding Leads, either Miss Shearsby or Miss Cartwright, and we will be happy to discuss this further.