Day: 3rd September 2025

Welcome back September 25

Mr Davies

Welcome Back!

I hope you all had a lovely summer with plenty of time to rest, relax and enjoy family adventures. It’s wonderful to see the school full of energy again, and I’d like to give a heartfelt welcome back to our families, both familiar faces and those who are joining us for the very first time. We’re so pleased to have you with us.

Vision and Community

I’m really excited about the year ahead as we take our next steps together. My vision is very much about growing our sense of community – a place where children feel they belong, where families feel part of the journey, and where we can achieve even more by working together. Volunteers play such an important part in this, and we’ll be seeking to open up more opportunities this year for parents, carers and friends of the school to get involved.

Uniform

You’ll also hear us talking a little about uniform over the coming weeks. While we don’t insist on it, we do encourage children to wear it, as it helps to create a sense of belonging and pride in our school. We’ll be exploring ways to make this easier for everyone, including the possibility of a swap shop to recycle and share items. For families who’d like to buy new, J & S Products in Tycoch continues to be a good place to source.

Communication

This term we’ll also be starting some gentle awareness-raising around Schools of Sanctuary – more details and updates are on our website here. Linked to this is clear information and communication. We currently use Class Dojo for updates and our website for public-facing information. This year we expect changes to our school data and communication systems that are managed by the local authority. We rely on your child’s education being a partnership between us and parents, and I would emphasise that the website will remain the key area for information at https://brynmill-primary-school1.j2bloggy.com/

A new start

As part of any new leadership, there is an opportunity to look at what is working well and what needs to change. Some of those changes are already in place with our new staff and roles. I look forward to listening to the views of pupils, parents, staff and our wider community to help shape the future direction together.

Thank you for your support so far – it really does make such a difference. I’m looking forward to a year full of learning, laughter, and shared achievements.

Mr Davies

Headteacher

Schools of Sanctuary Update

Mr Davies

Being recognised as a School of Sanctuary means a school has evidenced their commitment to making sure every child and family feel welcomed, safe and is supported to thrive. This includes upholding comprehensive safeguarding practices and policies as our highest priority.

The Schools of Sanctuary programme is not political – in a worryingly divided society where hateful rhetoric is widespread, it simply helps schools to talk factually about the different reasons people may have been forced to flee and their experiences arriving in the UK. Whatever a person’s viewpoint, the Schools of Sanctuary encourages children and adults alike to lead with kindness and humanity.

Stories of arriving in the UK are not abstract but are also shared by many in our school community. Being a School of Sanctuary not only helps us to understand the challenges newly arrivals might be experiencing and best support them, as we work hard to do for every one of our learners, but it also ensures that these children’s experiences are recognised and represented. In doing so, we hope that children seeking safety can feel just as safe, welcomed and valued in our community as their peers.

We are proud to be a school where every child feels safe, where we try to understand and meet every child’s individual needs, and we equip our pupils to be kind and thoughtful members of our communities. This is at the heart of who we are.

You can learn more about the Schools of Sanctuary programme here but if you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact us.