St Luke’s CE Primary School Newsletter

17.12.2020

Dear Parents,

Well here it is the last newsletter of 2020! What a year it has been, so many highs, so many things to be proud of and so many challenges to face. I wish I could say the challenges would all be gone as we go into 2021 but we all know that is wishful thinking. It makes the Christian Christmas message of forgiveness and hope so much more important. (I am a bit annoyed with Boris Johnson because he referenced the song I was going to use in this newsletter today in his speech yesterday, grrr, honestly I had planned this before then.) At the weekend I was listening to Kylie Minogue’s version of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and thought how apt it was for this year with lines such as;

‘Next year all our troubles will be miles away’

‘Faithful friends who are dear to us will be near to us once more.

Someday soon we all will be together if the fates allow.

Until then we’ll have to muddle through somehow.

So have yourself a merry little Christmas now.’

Here is a link to her version of this song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9K4_1zMu-Cg I hope we all manage to enjoy and make the most of our pared down Christmas this year and can hold on to that hope for the future.

Tomorrow we are holding our carol service online at 9.15 here is the link to it https://youtu.be/cOFX5j0BLnA it is locked down at the moment and will be opened tomorrow. Please be forgiving and remember we are not the BBC. The children have written all the readings and have done a great job. The words of the carols are on the screen so you can sing along as we will be doing in our own bubbles in school. Thank you so much to Mr Holt for the hours he has spent editing this.

Remember if your child tests positive for Corona Virus up to and including 24th December you need to let me know either by texting the school texting service or by emailing headteacher@st-lukes.derbyshire.sch.uk . If your child develops symptoms and you are having them tested it would be really helpful if you let me know just so I don’t have a surprise amount of work on Christmas Eve!

Derbyshire County Council has asked me to share the information below with you.

If you are a family on a low income you could get food vouchers for your children over the Christmas period. The money to pay for these vouchers has come from the government through its COVID-19 winter grant scheme which is over and above the other support schemes already provided by Derbyshire County Council. The family of every child who gets free school meals in Derbyshire schools because of low income can get a £30 food voucher for the Christmas holidays. You will get another voucher in February if you are still eligible, the amount will depend on the number of children who qualify at that time. Some other families are also eligible based on financial hardship. You will receive vouchers if you meet one of the following criteria:

• Have a child aged 3 to 18 in a Derbyshire school (nursery to year 13), eligible for free school meals because of low household income.

• Have a child aged 3 or 4 not in a Derbyshire school nursery that receives free childcare and qualifies for ‘pupil premium’ based on low income (this is sometimes called ‘economic funding’).

• Have a child aged 2 that is eligible for free 2-year-old childcare because of low household income.

You do not need to do anything if your child already meets these criteria (see our website for full terms and conditions). We will contact you and you should receive a payment by email or text message that should arrive by 21 December 2020. If you have children and you do not currently claim free school meals or means tested free childcare you may still be eligible. For full details of the scheme or to see what help and support is available, please visit www.derbyshire.gov.uk/winter

If you still owe any dinner money please can you pay it as soon as possible.

Have a lovely break if you can and I look forward to seeing you all on 4th January.

Stay happy and healthy

Alice Littlehailes