🌟 Welcome back to a new school year! 🌟

Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope you have all enjoyed a wonderful summer filled with special moments, family time and opportunities to relax and recharge.

We are delighted to welcome everyone back for the 2026–2027 academic year and are looking forward to another exciting year of learning, growth and success at Penclawdd Primary School.

At Penclawdd Primary, our motto continues to guide everything we do:

🌟 A happy face, a learning place, a growing space. 🌟

This year, alongside continuing to provide our rich and authentic curriculum, we will be focusing on a very important school improvement priority:

💚 Healthy Minds, Healthy Habits 💚

Our aim is to further promote positive wellbeing, healthy lifestyles and emotional resilience by encouraging children to spend more time engaging with books, nature, physical activity and meaningful social connections.In an increasingly digital world, we want to help our pupils develop healthy habits that support both their physical and emotional wellbeing, ensuring they are happy, confident and ready to learn.Over the coming year, we will be encouraging our children to:

🌿 Reconnect with Nature

We are fortunate to have such wonderful outdoor spaces and a beautiful local environment on our doorstep. Through woodland learning, outdoor experiences and environmental projects, we want children to develop a stronger connection with the natural world and recognise the positive impact being outdoors can have on wellbeing.

📚 Read More, Scroll Less

We will continue to promote a love of reading across the school, encouraging children to choose books for both enjoyment and research. Through increased opportunities to explore high-quality fiction and non-fiction texts, we hope to inspire curiosity, creativity and a lifelong love of reading.

⚽ Move More

Being active plays an essential role in children's wellbeing. This year we will be expanding opportunities for physical activity through active playtimes, sports clubs, outdoor learning and a range of exciting sporting experiences.

🤝 Connect More

One of the most important ways children develop confidence and happiness is through meaningful relationships. We want to encourage more opportunities for conversation, play, community involvement and shared experiences, helping children build strong friendships and a sense of belonging.

💛 Regulate More

We will continue to strengthen our whole-school approach to emotional wellbeing, helping pupils develop strategies to understand, express and regulate their emotions. Our goal is to ensure every child feels supported, resilient and ready to thrive.

We firmly believe that when children are connected to nature, immersed in books, physically active, engaged in their community and equipped with strategies to manage their emotions, they are better placed to succeed both inside and outside the classroom.Together, these priorities will help us continue to develop happy, healthy and confident learners who are ready to embrace the opportunities ahead.

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🌟Class newsletters,Home learning and exciting topic hooks!🌟

Our teaching teams have been busy preparing their Autumn Term Newsletters, packed with information about topic work, memorable learning experiences and important class updates.

🌐 Visit our Class Pages and Online Learning section, choose your child's class and discover what's in store for the term ahead.

You'll also find Home Learning activities for Reception to Year 6 available on the website, helping families support learning at home in meaningful, enjoyable and engaging ways.

🚀 Learning comes to life through our topic hooks!

At PPS, we believe the best learning begins with an unforgettable experience. Our classes are already preparing exciting topic hooks to launch their new learning journeys and inspire curiosity from day one.

🦩 Flamingos will be exploring Penclawdd Park before heading to Cariad for a delicious pizza-making workshop.

🐢 Sea Turtles will be stepping back in time with a visit to the magnificent Caerphilly Castle.

🦈 Sharks will be discovering the wonders of nature and wildlife at the Llanelli Wetland Centre.

🐻‍❄️ Polar Bears are in for a magical experience as they visit Warner Bros. Studio Tour – The Making of Harry Potter.

⭐ Starfish will be venturing to Dr Beynon's Bug Farm and St Davids Cathedral, combining science, history and exploration in one incredible experience.

These exciting visits are just the beginning of another year of our rich and authentic curriculum, where learning is brought to life through real experiences, meaningful connections and opportunities that inspire our children to question, discover and achieve.

We can't wait to share these adventures with you through our class blogs and newsletters throughout the year! 🌟📚✨

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💜PPS Community Fundraising💜

💜 Thank you to our Friends of Penclawdd

As we begin a new academic year, we would like to take a moment to express our sincere gratitude to the incredible team behind Friends of Penclawdd.Over many years, FoP has raised thousands of pounds for our school, helping to provide additional resources, enriching experiences and memorable opportunities for our children. Their commitment, generosity and hard work have made a lasting difference to school life, and we are immensely grateful for everything they have achieved.

As the committee members step down following many years of dedicated service, we would like to offer a special thank you to everyone who has given their time, energy and enthusiasm to support our school community. Their contribution has been invaluable.

Moving forward, the school staff will be coordinating fundraising and community events in partnership with our families and wider community. We are excited about this next chapter and look forward to working together to continue creating wonderful opportunities for our pupils. As always, we know that the strength of Penclawdd Primary School lies in its community, and we are incredibly grateful for the support, encouragement and generosity of our parents, carers and friends. Together, we can continue to make a real difference for our children. 💜

This year, all funds raised through our community events and School Lottery will be used to support our pupils and enrich the opportunities we can offer as part of our Healthy Minds, Healthy Habits journey. 🌿📚⚽💛

💜 Support Our School Lottery

One of the easiest ways to support Penclawdd Primary School throughout the year is by joining our School Lottery.

Every ticket purchased helps raise funds that directly benefit our pupils, supporting additional resources, educational experiences, sports, arts and enrichment opportunities that enhance school life.

🎟️ Join here: Click here to support Penclawdd Primary School Lottery

⭐ Next Draw

Saturday 12th September 2026

🏆 £25,000 Jackpot
🏆 Guaranteed school prize (increases as ticket sales grow)

Thank you for supporting our school community. Every ticket really does make a difference to our children. 💜🌟

 🎄PPS Fundraising -December 2026🎄

This year, fundraising events will be coordinated by the school in partnership with our families, and we are excited to share some of our festive plans for December.

🎁 Christmas Raffle

Our annual Christmas Raffle will once again offer the chance to win some fantastic prizes whilst helping to raise valuable funds for our pupils. More information about tickets and prizes will be shared nearer the time.

🎅 Sponsored Santa Dash

Friday 4th December

Led by our wonderful Senedd Penclawdd, pupils will take part in a festive Sponsored Santa Dash, combining fun, fitness and fundraising. We can't wait to see the school filled with Santa hats, festive outfits and lots of smiling faces as children take on the challenge together.

🎄✨ Annual Community Trip – Bath Christmas Market ✨🎄

Saturday 5th December 2026

Christmas will be here before we know it! Why not kick off the festive season with our much-loved Annual Community Trip to Bath Christmas Market?

Enjoy a magical day wandering through the beautifully decorated streets of Bath, browsing festive market stalls, soaking up the atmosphere and perhaps ticking a few gifts off your Christmas shopping list. 🎁✨

This trip is always a highlight of the festive calendar and a wonderful opportunity for families, friends and members of the wider community to come together and enjoy a day of Christmas cheer.

🎟️ Book your place early! If enough seats are sold, the trip will also help raise valuable funds to support opportunities and experiences for the children of Penclawdd Primary School.

We hope you'll join us for a day of festive fun, friendship and fundraising! 🎅🛍️✨

#PencCommunity #BathAtChristmas #TeamPenclawdd #FestiveFundraising

 

🎬 Christmas Film Night

Monday 7th December | 3:15pm – 4:30pm

Children are invited to enjoy a festive film afternoon with friends. For £5, pupils will receive a selection of snacks and a drink whilst enjoying a Christmas favourite in a cosy, festive atmosphere. We will send out booking details shortly.

To cater for different age groups and interests, there will be two separate film screenings running simultaneously, both taking place from 3:15pm–4:30pm. Children will be able to choose from two festive films, with details shared nearer the time.

We hope this will be a fun-filled afternoon of festive cheer to start the Christmas season! 🎄🍿✨

 

We hope these events will bring our school community together whilst raising funds to support enriching experiences and opportunities for all our children. Thank you, in advance, for your continued support. Together, we can make this festive season extra special for our pupils. ❤️🎄✨

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🌟 After School Childcare

We are delighted that our after-school childcare provision continues to be provided by the fantastic Child's Play Team.

Offering a variety of engaging activities in a safe and welcoming environment, the club provides children with opportunities to play, learn and socialise after the school day.

📞 07511 450688
📧 hello@childsplayswansea.co.uk

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Thank you for your continued support and partnership. Together, we look forward to another year of exciting opportunities, memorable experiences and success for every child.

Here's to a fantastic year ahead!

With warmest wishes,

Mrs R-M
Headteacher 💜

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📅 Upcoming Dates for Your Diary

Please see below for key dates and events taking place during the Autumn Term.

Educational visits this term

22nd September - Y5/6 Bug Farm, Pembrokeshire

23rd September - Y1/2 - Caerphilly Castle

28th September - Y3 - Wetlands, Llanelli

29th September - Rec/Y1 - Village walk and Cariad Pizza making

7th October - Y4/5 - Harry Potter Studio Tour

 

14th October - Flu Vaccination for Rec - Y6

21st October - Y3 - 6 - Harvest in Tabernacle ( Parents/Carers can attend ) 

23rd October - Foundation Learning N-Y2 Harvest    ( in school, pupils only ) 

26th - 30th October - half term holidays

8th November - Choir to sing in Penclawdd for Remembrance

13th November - Children in need ( led by our Senedd)

30th November - Theatre visit to the Sherman in Cardiff Y3 - Y6

3rd December - Nursery Nativity (am)

4th December - Sponsored Santa Dash daily mile 

5th December - Community Bath trip

7th December - after school Christmas Film night  3.15pm - 4.30pm

8th December - Nursery to visit Wiggley's Farm in Margam

8th December - Rec - Y2 Christmas performance (pm)

9th December - Rec - Y2 Christmas performance (am)

10th December - Elf day and Christmas Dinner day

11th December - Choir to sing in the community

17th December - Rec - Y2 - Christmas visit to Gower Heritage Centre

18th December - last day of school

4th January 2027 - INSET day