Parents
At Coppermill, we value a strong partnership between staff, parents and carers because we know this is important in helping children to achieve and to enjoy learning.
Visiting the school
We hope that you have found our website useful and informative. However, the best way of finding out about us is to arrange to visit us during the school day. If you are considering applying for your child to be admitted to Coppermill and would like to come and visit, please contact the school office on 020 8520 6267 to arrange an appointment. We are always pleased to meet prospective parents and children.
School office
Staff in the main office are happy to provide any information you need. The school office is wheel-chair accessible. If you have any other disability and wish to access our site, please contact our school office to discuss your requirements.
Newsletters
Every fortnight on a Friday, you will be emailed a newsletter to tell you about special events, school activities, news and to give you information on day-to-day school life. It is also published on the website.
Parent meetings
At the end of the Autumn and Spring terms, there will be invitations for all parents and carers to come into school to discuss their child’s progress and set targets for the rest of the academic year. Your child’s work will be available for you to see and discuss with their teacher.
End of year summary
In July your child will bring home their end of year report. Parents and carers can make an appointment to discuss the report with the class teacher if they wish.
Curriculum exhibitions & open learning days
These are occasions when parents and carers come into school to find out about children’s learning and how they’re being taught at Coppermill. Sometimes staff provide workshops and talks to help with your child’s learning.
Consultation
There is an annual questionnaire to survey your views about how the school is doing and to take your comments. Governors also consult with parents if there are any significant proposed changes.
Talking to the teacher or a member of staff
If we have any concerns about your child’s progress and well-being or behaviour, the teacher will contact you straight away to discuss this with you.
If you have any concerns that you want to discuss with us, then please contact us or come and see us as soon as possible. If you want to talk to a member of staff, then it is a good idea to telephone, send a note or email to request a mutually convenient time.
The most difficult time for teachers to talk to parents and carers is at the beginning of the school day. It is important for teachers to give their attention to welcoming and settling in all the children in the class, so please try to help us by leaving discussions until the end of the day unless it is very brief.
If you cannot come to school, or do not want to arrange an appointment, you can write, email or telephone us instead.
Parents with a serious worry or complaint should arrange to talk this over with one of the assistant headteachers, or the headteacher for more serious concerns. We hope that most problems or worries can be sorted out in this way. If you do not feel that the discussion has resolved the difficulty, then you can make a formal complaint. There is a formal procedure for making serious complaints – see policies section on the school website.
How can parents and carers get involved?
There are many ways in which parents and carers can support the work of the school. Most importantly you really help us when you support your child in coming to school on time and ready to learn each day. You help when you discuss with your child the work that they are involved in and when you follow it up at home. Research shows that children learn more successfully when their parents and carers are interested in what they learn at school.
There is always lots of learning that you can do at home to help children – reading to them, hearing them read, discussing books, helping them to learn their tables, to understand money and change, tell the time and by playing educational games such as Scrabble.
Helping the school
We welcome help in school but we ask that you commit yourself to a regular time slot so that we can plan for and rely on your attendance. Parents and carers help in classrooms in many ways including reading with children, working with them on their writing or providing extra adult support. You may also be able to share a special interest or skill with them – pottery, computing, sewing or sports coaching, for example. Please let us know if you would like to help us.
Outings and educational visits
When we take children out of school on an educational visit we need to increase the number of adults going with them. If you can come along when a class is going on an outing, please let the class teacher or school office know.
Parent teacher association
A group of parents, carers and friends of Coppermill Primary School work to raise additional money for the school and have organised summer fetes, Christmas fairs and other events. They are always grateful for volunteers and help. If you are interested in helping or joining the group, please give your details to the school admin officer who will pass your message on.
Please go to the PTA page for current information.