Dear Parents and Friends of the School

It might just be me, but it does seem like it's been a long week although in terms of school days it's actually only been four days. I can also claim INSET training on Monday for my excuse.

I probably say the same thing every year, but it was so lovely to see the children all returning this week with shiny smiling faces, uniform in excellent order, happy and excited to be back in school. This was very much the vibe from day one and we have kept that going throughout the week. Having said that, there may be some tired children (and head teachers) at the end of it all, who are looking forward to an early autumn weekend. It has actually rained this week and for once I am quite looking forward to mowing the lawn in my garden. The new green tinge to the school playing field also looks great.

One real highlight of the week has been watching how the new children in Year 6 have taken to their duties as buddies to this year's Reception classes. If you are a parent in Reception, I'm sure you will agree that having the older children there in the morning has made the transfer from parent and to school so much easier. The Reception children have been amazing. They have got into their brand-new routines really quickly and Ms Collie and Mrs Pullen are delighted with their wonderful new classes.

I talked in my assembly earlier in the week about how a year in school is a little bit like climbing a mountain. I managed a few days hiking in Lochnagar, Scotland over the holiday with my three grown-up children and I used the story of this trip as an allegory for the trials and tribulations of a year in school. We start off with great determination and enthusiasm; show some curiosity, creativity and respect along the way; we're probably going to need some resilience in there too; ultimately, we get to climb an amazing mountain and feel the satisfaction of another lifetime achievement.

That is the journey we are all on and we started this week. Let's look forward to it and relish the challenges ahead.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Joe Thackway
Headmaster

Co-Curricular Clubs start on Monday 8 September. SOCS has been updated with all the lists from external providers and it is important you check which clubs your child is booked in for.  I would recommend syncing your calendar with SOCS.

Please note the following:

Uniform Expectations

The uniform expectation for all sporting clubs is school PE kit. The only exceptions are leotards for yoga and street dance and TaeKwonDo uniform.

Most children do before school clubs in their uniform to save changing after. 

Early Collection

Children are unable to be collected at alternative times to the set end of a co-curricular club. As much as we like to be accommodating I am afraid we cannot meet these requests due to the logistics of not having staff to safely hand over your child to their adult. Most clubs have one adult running them.

If you wish to remove a child from a club due to this protocol then please let Mrs Tucker know and she will update our records.

Thank you for understanding.

Mrs Webb
Assistant Head

As part of being an ECO school, we are always looking at new ways to be sustainable. For our Outdoor Learning/Forest School next week, we will be planting speedy salad seeds and require some recycled pots to do this.

 If you have any small shallow plastic trays e.g. blueberry/raspberry punnets; cream cheese tubs etc we would love to reuse them.

They can be sent in with you child to give to me or you can drop them into the pre-loved uniform box outside the  school office before Tuesday. Thank you.

Mrs Dowling
Forest School Leader

When parking around the school site to drop off and collect your children please be mindful of the needs of other road users and in particular the safety of pedestrians.

Please avoid parking at or near to road junctions. We would also advise parents/grandparents/other relatives against parking opposite the school zig zag lines. This creates a blockage for oncoming vehicles at busy times and results in cars backing up to the junction of Magnet Road.

St Mark's Church in Bilton have confirmed that parents can use their car park for drop off and collection from school.  It is a large car park and there is a short cut from Church Walk which brings you out onto Bawnmore Court beside the school.

A short walk and a breath of fresh air is excellent at helping children get ready for their morning's learning. 

Joe Thackway
Headmaster

Please can all Reception children have a Puddle Suit and Wellies for our Forest School sessions. These should be named and sent in with your child on Monday 8 September.  

Thank you for your support with this.

Mrs Dowling
Forest School Teacher

Dear Parents

Just a little reminder about the pens we expect the children in Upper School to have from this September. Each child will have different preferences, so we are recommending a range of pens for the children to have in school from Year 4. In Year 3 they are awarded a pen licence which comes with its own pen (Berol handwriting pen).

The options we expect to see in school are:

• Parker or Lamy Fountain pen
• Berol Handwriting pen
• Staedtler Handwriting pen
• Uniball Micro Air Rollerball pen
• Uniball Eye Rollerball pen

These are all to be used with blue ink only. Please do not buy pens that have an erasable rubber - making mistakes is very much part of their learning.

Each child is an individual and certain pens will suit your child more than others. We have been specific as we feel this will be of help to you and beneficial to the children and their work. They should not be using biros at all in any of their schoolwork and fine liners are only allowed for additional presentation of work.

Thank you for your support with this. We look forward to seeing all the new pens (named of course) this term.

Best wishes

Mrs Clark/Mrs Yates
Head of English/SENDCo

During key weeks when there is exam pressure, we like to remove homework from the children's workload. Next weekend it is the 11+ so no homework will be set this week. 

For children not taking the 11+, these children still have plenty to focus their homework time on: reading, Abacus and Times Table Rock Stars to name a few. 

Mrs Webb
Class 6W Form Teacher

World Duchenne Awareness Day (WDAD) is on Saturday and as a school community we would like to raise awareness of this rare disease which affects 100 boys born each year in the UK. This is very close to our heart here at Crescent School.

WDAD highlights the role of family members for people living with Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy.

Living with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a journey marked by both physical challenges and emotional resilience. At the centre of this journey is family. The love, support and daily involvement of family members play a vital role - not just in caregiving, but in shaping the quality of life and emotional well-being of those living with DMD.

For a person with Duchenne, parents are often their fiercest advocates and most devoted caregivers; siblings are companions and lifelong friends; grandparents, uncles and aunts are a steadying presence. Family can also be the community where people live in an inclusive way.

Echoing this, here at Crescent we invite everyone, irrespective of their personal connection to Duchenne, to join us in creating a more inclusive world where people living with disabilities are empowered to thrive.

If you would like to learn more please visit https://www.worldduchenneday.org/

Mrs Yates
SENDCo

Children from Year 3 may bring a Kindle or other e-reader to school for reading only. This can make books more accessible and often more affordable. We find that sticking to one book at a time, whether digital or physical, helps to avoid confusion.

Please note:

• E-readers must be used for reading only; internet access is not permitted.
• Any misuse will be reported to parents.
• Devices are the child’s responsibility; the school cannot be liable for damage.

There are plenty of books available in school, so an e-reader is completely optional - just another way to enjoy reading.

Mrs Clark
Head of English

Weekly Calendar 

After School

Provision can be booked through My School Portal selecting the sessions you require. If you require your child to have tea, please ensure bookings are made by 10.00am each day.  

MySchoolPortal

Crescent School

Please click below to view the lunch menu for next week. 

Crescent School

Please see below to view the music lesson timetable:

Instrumental timetable 8th Sept 25

Mrs Westlake
Head of Music

Please click on the link below which provides information regarding areas of the curriculum where you may be able to help your child at home.

• Class 1K Michaelmas 2025
• Class 2E Michaelmas 2025
• Class 3S Michaelmas 2025
• Class 4M Michaelmas 2025
• Class 4S Michaelmas 2025
• Class 5C Michaelmas 2025
• Class 5F Michaelmas 2025
• Class 6W Michaelmas 2025

Ms Forth
Deputy Head - Curriculum

Year 6 went out to watch the Lloyds Tour of Britain as they raced down Alwyn Road near the school today on Stage 4 of the event. It was super exciting for the children who were lined up along the road. Everyone cheered and waved enthusiastically as the leaders and then the peloton flew passed followed by their accompanying cars and police out-riders. Extra special thanks to Warwickshire Police who slowed down to high five the children! The race then went on to pass Princethorpe College and some of their Year 7 went down to watch too. What an exciting spectacle it was for everyone!

A valued and important tradition here at Crescent School is for the Year 6 children to buddy with a Reception child to support them through their first year at school.  It’s part of what makes Crescent such a nurturing environment where every child can flourish. The Year 6s help Reception settle into school, assisting them at lunchtime, modelling good manners, encouraging them in their play and generally being friendly, helpful and welcoming. 

On Tuesday, our new Reception and Year 6 children met their buddies for the first time, and everyone enjoyed some bonding time.

Our buddy system is a positive experience for all involved, encouraging kindness and cooperation and providing strong foundations for a supportive and connected school community. It’s a rite of passage for our Year 6 pupils, an opportunity for them to give back to their school and we know they will all enjoy playing their part. 

We are delighted to welcome Mrs Westlake to our teaching team. She has over two decades of experience as a music teacher, most recently as Director of Music at Maidwell Hall Prep School and piano teacher at Repton.

She trained as a concert pianist, studying solo piano at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and completing her postgraduate studies in Chamber Music at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. She’s also an accomplished clarinettist. 

After teaching piano at Glenalmond and Strathallan, Mrs Westlake started her classroom teaching at Bangkok Patana, an international school in Thailand. Returning to the UK, she was Director of Music at Packwood Haugh Prep School, before moving to Brambletye Prep School and then back to South East Asia as the first Director of Music at Rugby School Thailand.

Mrs Westlake is passionate about inspiring a love of music in young people and very much looks forward to guiding the children of Crescent on their musical journey. 

Bwengu Projects Malawi has given us an update on how the money raised by Crescent School has been spent and shared some photos which you can see here. Last school year, Year 4 raised an amazing £1,351 and the pupils chose to spend the money they had raised on refurbishing the Matecha Early Learning Centre. The children did so well that their funds were also used to improve the Namulundulu Medical Centre and fund some adult education lessons. A really big thank you to everyone who supported Year 4’s incredible fundraising efforts. New Year 4s - your turn next! 
 

In August, we were incredibly proud to see the Classes of 2018 and 2020 receiving their respective A-level and GCSE results. We wished them well and hope we brought back some fun memories with the old photos we found of them when they were here at Crescent School. We were thrilled to see our former pupils achieving such good grades and congratulate them and their fellow pupils at Princethorpe College on an excellent set of exam results. It is always so wonderful to watch our pupils go on to so much success.  We wish everyone the very best of luck as they move on to their choice of next steps.

Tuesday 9 September - 6.30pm to 7.30pm

Princethorpe College's Admissions Team will be holding an Online Parents' Q&A session on Tuesday 9 September from 6.30pm to 7.30pm.

The event will be a live streamed Q&A session with Grove du Toit (Headmaster), Michael Spencer (Deputy Head - Academic) and Catherine Rogers (Registrar).

This is a chance for parents interested in Year 7 to 10 entry to the College in September 2026 to ask our Admissions Team questions relating to the admissions process and Entrance Examinations Day in an informal forum before the registration deadline of Friday 26 September.

If you would like to attend please click on this link where you will also be able to submit any questions in advance.

Sunday 14 September 2025 - 2.00pm to 5.00pm

Princethorpe will be holding its annual Open Afternoon on Sunday 14 September from 2.00pm to 5.00pm. All are welcome to visit the College and for younger visitors, there will be many fun subject related activities organised by the departments.

The Headmaster will address visitors during the afternoon and refreshments will be available. 

Click here to book your place.

Tuesday 16 September - 4.00pm to 5.00pm

We are very much looking forward to welcoming you to our Pre-Prep information session, in person,  from 4.00pm to  5.00pm on Tuesday 16 September.

We will talk you through our approach to teaching phonics and reading at Crescent and introduce our  phonics system called Monster Phonics. There will be hints and tips to help you support your child and maximise success in all areas of literacy whether they have just started in Reception, are developing their skills in Year 1 or building depth and extension in Year 2. This year we are really focusing on building strong reading comprehension alongside fluency and expression so come and find out how you can support this at home.

We have a number of platforms that your child will be able to access to support their learning from Spelling Shed for literacy to Abacus and Times Table Rock Stars for maths. We will run through each of these and the role they can play in strengthening and securing core skills and confidence.

We are holding the session straight after school to make it as easy as possible for you to attend. Children are welcome to go to After School free of charge for the duration of the meeting, they must be booked in via MSP before the meeting. There will be lots of  information for parents of children in all years of pre-prep so it would be lovely to see as many of you there as possible.

Book Here

Mrs Emery 
Head of Pre-Prep and Year 2 Teacher

Tuesday 30 September 2025 - 6.00pm to 7.00pm

We are opening our doors for a dedicated Reception and Year 3 Open Evening on Tuesday 30 September 2025 from 6.00pm.

This Open Evening is for prospective families wishing to join Reception or Year 3 in September 2026 and beyond.

The evening will include presentations as well as opportunities to look around the school and visit specialist classrooms. There will be a chance to speak to key members of staff. Joe Thackway, Headmaster, will be available to answer any questions you may have about the school.   

To book your place please click here.

If you can't make the Open Evening but would like to visit the school, please call our Registrar, Mrs Becky Witcomb on 01788 521595 or email admissions@crescentschool.co.uk and come on a day to suit you.

Our early bird deadline for registrations for September 2026 is Friday 17 October. 

For more information visit www.crescentschool.co.uk

In assembly this morning the new House Captains received their badges:

• Blue House - Isabella and Charlotte
• Red House - Alfie and Evelyn
• Yellow House - Aria and Esme

We wish them all every success in their roles.

Joe Thackway
Headmaster

NEW! Pupils whose heat map has 'Gone Green' - Consistently under 4 seconds for all table facts up to 12 x 12. These children receive a JdV Practice too.

Most improved speedsters in the studio are:

2E

• Max- Rock Legend!

5C

• Elliot- Rock Star!!
• Dare - Busker!

6W

• Esme - Rock Star!

New battle between all classes 3-10 September 2025. All playing counts apart from Jamming.

Please note only the children should play on their account or it influences the level appropriate to them.

Art Frizzmeister 
Deputy Head

Some of the things the children have done this week:

It’s hard to believe we’ve already completed our first week in school and the classes are now familiar with structured play routines in Reception.  We have all been making new friends and enjoyed lunchtimes with our Year 6 buddies. 

We’ve made the most of free flow opportunities between the Reception classes to enhance social interactions and enjoyed a couple of story time sessions together. 

Some of the things the children will be learning in the weeks to come:

We will be completing Baseline assessments with the children that informs us of what the children know at the point of starting school.  

In phonics we will be covering some of the ‘Black Cat’ single letter sounds:

s    a    t    p

How to help your child at home:

Practise single letters and their sounds. Play games that encourage the children to identify the initial sounds of objects e.g. eye-spy.

Share stories, encourage the children to identify sounds in print.

Encourage mark making/ writing and practise holding a pencil correctly and comfortably.

Secure knowledge of amounts for numbers 1-5.

Match numerals to amounts.

Encourage the children to dress independently.

Practise packing school bags with daily equipment – reading folders, snack bags.

What’s coming up/notices/reminders

Timetables have been sent home – please ask if you have any queries.

Reading folders will come home. Please read and sign the record book each evening and return to school the following day.

Please send in a few family photographs (including grandparents where possible) as we will be beginning our topic ‘All about me’.

On Fridays we have ‘Show and Tell.’ The children are invited to bring in something from home (not a toy) that they are willing to share and talk about.

Class RC will have their first Forest School session next Monday 8 September - please make sure their puddle suits and wellies are in school.

This year we will be using Seesaw, a digital sharing platform, to record and share samples of the children’s work with you. We will provide further information on this soon.

Mrs Collie and Mrs Pullen
Reception Class Teachers

We’ve had a brilliant first week back in Year 1! The children have settled in beautifully and have enjoyed exploring their new classroom, getting to know new routines and reconnecting with friends. It’s been lovely to see their confidence and curiosity shining through already.

In Maths, we’ve been consolidating our understanding of numbers 1–20 through counting games, number lines and practical activities such as number hunts in our classroom that help build fluency and confidence.

In Phonics, we’ve focused on the sounds zz, ff, ll, and ss. We’ve also introduced the rule that these double letters usually appear at the end of short words with a single vowel sound—like buzz, off, hill, and kiss. The children have enjoyed spotting these patterns and practising their reading and writing.

In History, we’ve started learning about Florence Nightingale, which has sparked lots of interest and thoughtful questions. We explored who she was, why she is remembered, and how she helped improve hospitals. The children were fascinated by her story and are looking forward to learning more about her impact.

It’s been a joyful and busy start to the term, and we’re so proud of how well the children have adapted and engaged with their learning. We’re excited for all the adventures ahead in Year 1!

Mrs Kumar
Year 1 Teacher

Celebrating being part of class 2E

We have started an activity called ‘start the year with a bang’. There are 20 balloons around the screen in the classroom all with a name inside. Each day we pop one balloon and the child whose name comes out is celebrated that day – they get to be at the front of the line and the children all tell their friend the things that they like about them and we write it on their certificate. It’s a great way for the children to feel a special part of the class and to know how much they are valued and what they are valued for. If we are having a bit of a sad day, we can look at our certificate and see just how loved we are. 

Phonics and Spelling

We have looked at vowels and syllables this week in phonics. They are so important for helping us to understand our spelling rules and help us choose from the different digraphs that make the same sound. We have looked at how to choose whether the ‘k’ sound at the end of a word is made using ‘ck’ or ‘k’. Ask your child if they can remember the elephant rhyme to identify the vowels.

Mrs Emery
Class 2E Form Teacher

Dear Parents and Carers,

One of our key aims at Crescent school is to enable all of our amazing pupils to become astute, creative and safe Digital Citizens, not just passive users of the internet, but active, productive, considerate and discerning members of the online world we now live in. We are always searching for new and innovative ways to facilitate this development, and as such are excited to introduce a new addition to our school’s provision in this area... Natterhub! 

Natterhub is a completely secure, closed and closely moderated educational platform for primary schools. It looks and functions like 'real' social media but it is gated to the school environment meaning that children can explore and play in an entirely safe, online space to properly understand the benefits and potential pitfalls of being online. 

Natterhub also includes interactive lessons on all aspects of online safety for Years 1-6, which will be delivered by myself and other class teachers during Computing and PSHE lessons. These lessons aim to support your children in all aspects of their digital world and are aligned to the updated compulsory RSE National Curriculum, which makes online safety a compulsory element in primary school teaching. Children work their way through the Natterhub 'Badges of Honour', which track and assess their journey to become a fully-fledged digital citizen! 

This includes: 

● How to communicate appropriately using technology 

● The importance of time on and off screens 

● How to learn effectively, using the Internet 

● To make intelligent choices about what they do online 

● The importance of respectful online dialogue 

● To use privacy settings to stay safe online

At first Natterhub will only be used by the pupils in school lesson time, to enable them to explore and potentially make mistakes (key learning points!) under close supervision, however once the older KS2 pupils are fully secure with the rules, expectations and pitfalls of this, it may also be opened up to be used at home at a certain set time once a week.

To find out more about the platform, simply visit www.natterhub.com, and if you have any worries or concerns at all, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me!

Mr Adkins
Head of Digital Learning

Calling all new school parents!

Our FoC committee coordinate lots of fun activities, events and fundraising for the children across the year. There's room for all kinds of involvement from parents - at the front, in the middle or behind the scenes, and it's not all baking cakes! 

All our skills are useful somewhere, and every helping hand, however small all adds up. If you'd like to know more and think you might be able to help please contact me on 07931 831538 to chat.  In particular it's useful to coordinate comms about FoC events through one or two individuals in each year group, and so new Reception parents please get in touch !

Upcoming events:

1. Friday 12 September 4S Bake Sale
2. Friday 26 September Macmillan Coffee morning, including a pre-loved uniform stall.  All pre-loved uniform donations accepted.  Please leave in the box by the school office.

Louisa Hosegood
FoC Chair

Friday 12 September 2025 - 3.30pm to 4.45pm

Please come along and support the FoC by buying cakes and sweets, all priced at £1 each. All the money raised at these market day events goes towards privilege time for Class 4S.

Friends of Crescent

Click here to view the term dates for 2025/26.

Click here to view 2026/27.

Crescent School

We regularly recruit for a variety of roles, please do share news of the vacancies with interested friends and family. Current vacancies include:

Crescent School

• Lunchtime Supervisor

Full details and information on how to apply are available on the Foundation website here:

www.princethorpe.co.uk/join-us

Should you know anyone who might be interested in these posts, please do share this information with them.

Please see below for useful school contact information:

Crescent School Office

01788 521595

Email: admin@crescentschool.co.uk

Postal address: Crescent School, Bawnmore Road, Bilton, Rugby CV22 7QH

After School Club

01788 523850

Bills, Fees and Online Payment

01926 634273

Email: georginamalin@princethorpe.co.uk

Registrar

01788 523851

Email: admissions@crescentschool.co.uk

Princethorpe College General Office

01926 634200

Email: post@princethorpe.co.uk

website:  www.crescentschool.co.uk

x:    @CrescentSchRug

facebook: @cres.school

instagram: @crescentschoolrugby

Uniform can be ordered here:

Uniform Order Form

Please note the following items are stocked in the School Office and can be added to your account. Do pop in to collect any items.

• Winter hats
• Scarves
• Gloves
• Ties
• Swimming hats
• Sports socks
• Hair bands
• Hair scrunchies
• Hair clips
• Sun hats
• Music group badges - Choir, Orchestra, String and Brass 

Contact details for the School Uniform Shop are:
Tel: 01926 634272
Email: uniform@princethorpe.co.uk