Weekly Newsletter

Headteacher - Mr J Parkinson

Associate Assistant Headteacher - Miss L Whale

Associate Assistant Headteacher - Mr K Reynolds

Dear Parents & Carers,

It has been another busy and exciting week of learning and creativity across school.

Our Harvest donations have now been given to Pontefract Food Bank. We were overwhelmed by the generosity of our families — thank you to everyone who contributed to this important cause. Your kindness will make a real difference to those in our community.

On Thursday, our Year 1 and 2 pupils visited Pontefract Castle, where they took part in a Magna Carta workshop linked to their current history topic. The children were highly engaged and came away with a deeper understanding of this important historical event.

Meanwhile, Year 6 had a particularly memorable writing lesson on Thursday, during which they welcomed a ‘new pupil’ to their class. Interestingly, several pupils noted that this new arrival looked remarkably similar to a certain member of staff! They were intrigued by the curious personality and stories shared by this mysterious visitor. Mr Reynolds – who, coincidentally, had stepped out during the visit – has since encouraged pupils to write about the experience in their next piece of creative writing. Perhaps you can spot the ‘new pupil’ in the photo below!

Today, a group of selected pupils represented Larks Hill at the Dance Competition held at The Hut in Airedale. They performed brilliantly and were excellent ambassadors for our school – well done to all involved!

Also today, the whole school took part in ‘Wear Something Yellow Day’ to mark World Mental Health Day. Thank you very much for your generous donations to YoungMinds – we have so far raised £153.00. If you have not yet had chance to donate and would still like to, please find the link here: https://www.justgiving.com/page/larks-hill-school-3?utm_medium=FR&utm_source=CL

Our Mental Health Ambassadors led an inspiring assembly focused on how to look after our wellbeing, reminding everyone of the importance of kindness, balance, and talking about how we feel.

Last weekend Oliver, one of our Year 2 students competed at the Irish Karate Open and won 3 gold medals after only 18 months practicing the sport. We are all very proud of Oliver and his incredible achievement.

Friday, 17th October - Year 5 & 6 Funded Trip to Go Ape

Monday, 20th October - Year 1 & 2 Funded Trip to Go Ape

Tuesday, 21st October - Year 3 & 4 Funded Trip to Go Ape

Tuesday, 21st October - EYFS 2026 Open Evening - 4.30pm - 5.30pm

Wednesday, 22nd October - SEND Coffee Morning - 9am - 10am

Thursday, 23rd October - Pumpkin Carving Competition Entries to School

Thursday, 23rd October - Halloween Fancy Dress/non-uniform day for £1.

Prizes will be given for the best Fancy Dress!

Thursday, 23rd October - Thrill on the Hill 2! - 5pm - 6.30pm

Friday, 24th October - Last Day of half term.

On Thursday 23rd October we will be having a Halloween Fancy Dress/non-uniform day for £1. Prizes will be given for the best Fancy Dress!

This Halloween we will once again be holding our Halloween themed extravaganza, Thrill on the Hill 2! Come back to school from 5pm to take part in the spooky spirit of Halloween, even bigger and better than last year’s event.

Please see the attached flyer for more details.

Tickets cost £2 each (for adults and children) and are available to buy on MCAS. There are three ticket options available, Meat Hot Dogs, Veggie Hot Dogs or No Hot Dogs. This is just to give us an indication of numbers and hot dogs are not included in the ticket price - they will cost £1.50 each on the evening.

Entries for the Pumpkin Competition should be brought to school on the morning of Thursday 23rd October. The pumpkins will be arranged outside in the evening at Thrill on the Hill, so everyone can see them. The Junior Leadership Team will pick winning pumpkins and these will be announced in the Friday Celebration Assembly.

Oakley - EYFS

Olivia - Year 1

Oliver - Year 2

Jude A - Year 3

Spencer - Year 4

Harrison - Year 5

Heather - Year 5

Lockie - Year 4

Spencer - Year 4

Fin NM, Elizabeth T and Levi T – for their voluntary contribution in supporting members of staff with resources.

Our Mental Health Ambassadors – for their hard work in preparing and leading today’s assembly.

George C – for his beautifully presented writing book, which was first noticed by our helpful Year 6s!

Have a lovely weekend, and we look forward to seeing everyone back on Monday for another exciting week at Larks Hill.

Yours sincerely,
Mr Reynolds

This week is week 3 of the current menu

This October Half-Term, join us at The Piece Hall for a haunted Halloween Trail!

We will be running the trail from Monday 27th to Friday 31st October between 11am and 2.30pm.

Alongside the trail, children will have the chance to trick or treat at participating retailers and try their hand at some hair-raising free Halloween crafts. We will also be running face painting and glitter tattoos with a small additional charge.

The Featherstone Flyers Under 10's girls football team is currently recruiting for additional players. Please see the below poster for further information.

We are pleased to be able to share our Autumn Term Diary dates!

Please be aware that there may be some changes to these as the term progresses and there may be other events added, so make sure to check your school communications regularly to keep up-to-date.

More details about individual events will be sent out as they arise.