02.04.26 - Newsletter
Goodbye Miss O’Rourke
Today we say goodbye to Miss O’Rourke who has been helping children at Ravenswood Primary School for over 30 years (Since 1993!) This morning staff had a special breakfast with her to celebrate her time at Ravenswood and to wish her all the best in a well deserved retirement.
Good Luck Miss Cubbon
Today Miss Cubbon will go on maternity leave. We wish her all the best and think that she will be a fantastic mother to her new arrival. Mrs Robson will work with class 15 for the rest of the academic year.
Easter Fun!
Thank you so much to the friends of Ravenswood (FOR) for organising lots of Easter fun for the children at the end of term. We had a fantastic turn out for the decorated egg competition with so many tables of egg-cellent entries! For legal reasons I can’t give out the name of the judge who had the incredibly difficult job of picking out winners.
So that all of the Ravenswood family can see the wonderful decorated eggs, they will be put outside the KS1 hall (next to the main office) from 2:45 on the last day. Please make sure all of the eggs are collected. Any left behind will unfortunately be put into the bin to avoid an eggy smell on the return after the holidays.
The FOR also very kindly donated an easter egg for every child to take part in an Easter Egg hunt today exploring our lovely school grounds.
Blue Leaf Energy / Tales on the Tyne
Thanks very much to a kind sponsorship from Blue Leaf Energy, Ravenswood will be able to take part in the Peter Rabbit: Tales On The Tyne - A Wild in Art Event project. Miss Hines has been working hard to design our very own Raven’s Rabbit which will sport the Ravenswood uniform, school vision tree’s and a water theme.
Here is a sneak preview of the main design:
Tree Planting
As part of our ongoing outdoor learning, with support from the Northumberland Wildlife Trust, each child was able to plant a tree along the edge of the school field next to the coast road. We are hoping to add to improve the view of our grounds to see more tree’s than the cars on the coast road.
School Dinners
We have been notified by the Local Authority that from Monday 20th April the price of a school dinner will be £3.10 per day.
Announcement from the Governing Body
Dear Parents and Carers,
The governing body would like to share an update about a proposal we will soon be submitting regarding our Reception intake for future years. We want to reassure you from the outset that nothing will change for any existing year groups, and this update is simply to keep our school community well informed.
Over recent years, there has been a clear national and local decline in birth rates, which schools across the area are experiencing. As a result, we are proposing to temporarily reduce our Published Admission Number (PAN) for Reception from three classes to two, starting from September 2026. This change would apply only to Reception children joining us from that point onwards.
This proposal is based on careful planning to ensure that our school continues to operate sustainably and remains able to provide the high-quality learning environment, staffing stability, and resources that our children deserve. With fewer children expected in our local area in the short term, running as a two-form entry school is a more financially viable model. Importantly, this reduction is intended to be only temporary.
Alongside this proposal, Newcastle City Council is also submitting an application to the Department for Education for us to be considered for the School Rebuilding Programme. Our aim is for Ravenswood to be rebuilt as a modern, fully equipped school for the future. The school will work with the Local Authority and the DFE to agree the future size of the school that is required to serve the needs of the local area when a firm proposal for rebuilding is in place.
We will keep you updated and share the outcomes of both applications as soon as we receive them.
Thank you for your continued support and for being such a strong part of our school community.
Best wishes,
Simon Mather
Chair of Governors