Caring Curious Courageous

Enabling all children to learn and grow

Dear families,

Unbelievably, we are coming to the end of the first half-term of this academic year! It has certainly been a very busy term, with the children settling in well after the summer break.

It was lovely to see so many families at our family-teacher evenings this week. If you were unable to attend, please do make an appointment with your child's class teacher. These meetings are extremely important in ensuring that school and families work closely together to support the children in achieving their personal best.

Thank you to the year 3 families who organised pyjama day, the children have absolutely loved it. So far we have raised £248.22, which will go towards funding Christmas activities at school. If you would like to make a contribution, please do via the Arbor app. Thank you!

Family Forum

A big thank you to all the families who joined our recent Family Forum and shared their ideas and feedback! It was such a positive meeting with families working together to rebuild our fantastic Vineyard community. Since the forum, we’ve been busy putting your suggestions into action: 

• creating a family engagement section in the newsletter
• clarifying how families can suggest an event
• raising the profile of Friends of The Vineyard 
• ensuring all families can connect to their WhatsApp groups
• sharing instructions on how to subscribe to the website calendar
• signposting the opening times of the uniform shop

Scroll down to the Family Engagement Section for more information. 

In the meantime, don't forget to buy your tickets for The Vineyard Fireworks event. Firework tickets

I hope you all have a lovely half term break.

Frances

Frances Bracegirdle

Headteacher - headteacher@vineyard.richmond.sch.uk

Report from the Governors

1H Autumn term 2026

The Vineyard’s Governing Board is made up of 13 governors: the Headteacher; a local authority governor proposed by the Governing Board and appointed by the local authority; two parent governors elected by the parent body; one staff governor elected by the staff; eight co-opted governors chosen by the Governing Board for the skills that they bring to the Board.  Of the eight co-opted governors, four are current parents at the school. Our current board members and a brief profile of each of them can be found on the school website.

Governors are responsible for overseeing the management side of a school. They focus on strategy, policy, budgeting, and staffing, working alongside senior leaders and supporting teachers to provide excellent education to children.

To read more please see this link

Walking Home in the Autumn and Winter Months 

As the nights begin to get darker, now is a good time to speak with your Year 5 and 6 child about being safe when walking home alone in the dark. If your child stays for a club after school, it may mean they are walking home on their own in the dark. Here are some top tips to share with them: 

• Be bright, be seen! Wear something bright or reflective, such as a hi-vis vest, reflective strips on your coat or bag, or a clip-on light.

• Stick to safe, familiar routes. Use pavements and well-lit streets that you know. 

• Stop, look, listen and think. Stop at the kerb, look all around, listen for traffic and cross only when it is safe. 

• Keep your eyes and ears open. Put phones away. Pay attention to what's happening around you.

NSPCC PANTS Assemblies 

This week our assemblies have been PANTS themed!

We have been learning about the NSPCC’s PANTS rule using the PANTS approach and resources, including the Pantosaurus story. In age-appropriate class assemblies, the children explored the PANTS rules, identified which parts of their bodies are private, and discussed different types of touch, including safe and appropriate and unsafe or inappropriate touch. The children looked at scenarios involving respectful and disrespectful behaviour, discussed what to do if something makes us feel uncomfortable, and practised how to respond and seek help from a trusted adult.

You can continue these important conversations at home using the NSPCC’s PANTS resources to help reinforce the message that their body belongs to them, they have the right to feel safe, and they can always speak to a trusted adult if something worries them.

Get Involved in Our Vineyard Community!

There are so many wonderful ways to contribute to life at The Vineyard, and we’d love more parents and carers to get involved!

Do you have a few hours to spare? A skill to share? An idea for a new event or fundraiser? Whatever you can offer, there’s a job to suit and you’ll meet new friends while doing it. Please email volunteer@vineyard.richmond.sch.uk.

Christmas Volunteers Wanted!

We’re looking for enthusiastic volunteers to help bring together a range of Christmas activities and events for the children and wider school community this year.

Some exciting ideas are already taking shape, but we need more helping hands to bring them to fruition.

Current opportunities include:

• Santa’s Fly-By – Helping organise Santa’s visits to the younger classes. Timetabling, gift-logistics, elf-directing.
• Christmas Crafts & Activities – Helping plan and run creative activities.
• Christmas Tree Fundraiser – Run this fundraiser from start to finish. Coordinating tree orders, deliveries and collections.
• Christmas Cards Fundraiser – Supporting the communications and distribution for this annual fundraiser.
• Carols and mulled wine 10.12.2026 6.30-8pm – We are looking for some volunteers to help run an informal evening of carols, drinks and mince pies.
• Christmas Lunch – Helping create a festive atmosphere for the children, with decorations and table settings.
• …And more! We can make some fantastic festive memories for the children with a core team of dedicated volunteers. 

Christmas Planning Meeting

Monday 2nd November
9:15am
Location: Library

Ready to get involved in Vineyard Christmas? You are welcome to come to this meeting, where the above events and fundraisers will be discussed and tasks allocated. Take on a role, offer to help out for an hour or two, or bring your own ideas for Christmas or other festive celebrations. We’d love to hear from you.

Interested in helping? Please complete our Christmas Volunteer Sign-Up Form.

Uniform Shop Update

Our amazing uniform shop continues to raise much-needed funds for the school. Thank you to everyone who supports the shop through donating and buying uniform. Not only does your support result in new resources for the children, but we are doing our bit for the planet too.

We’d also like to say a big thank you to Sostrene Grene in Richmond, who generously donated 18 brand new wire baskets which are already making a big difference to how the uniform is displayed!

This month we have adjusted our pricing slightly. We have lots of stock of school sweatshirts priced at £2.50. Please do come and stock up before the winter months! PE kit items have dropped in price, while high street “non logo” items like trousers and dresses have increased by 50p. Everything is still just a fraction of the new price and the highest priced item is only £5.00 (PE waterproof jacket, £23.25 new!).

The shop is staffed by a small team of parent volunteers every weekday morning from 8.45-9.15am, and new volunteers would be very welcome. Email volunteer@vineyard.richmond.sch.uk to put your name in the hat.

VOLUNTEER VACANCY!

Community Coordinator(s)

Help bring our school community together! We’re looking for an organised, friendly volunteer (or volunteers) to support parent-led events and fundraising initiatives, and help keep communication flowing between the school, parents and class representatives.

Time commitment: Approximately 2–3 hours per week (flexible).

Role & Responsibilities

• Maintain an overview of the annual events and fundraising calendar, helping to avoid date clashes.
• Act as a link between the school and parents organising events, helping with practical arrangements and logistics.
• Support event organisers with planning and coordination, without being responsible for running the events themselves.
• Be a central point of contact for parent involvement, helping welcome new volunteers and match their skills and availability with opportunities.
• Help manage the Vineyard Community Announcements channel and class representatives’ WhatsApp group, ensuring information is shared effectively.
• Complete relevant school training, hold a current DBS, and follow school policies on safeguarding, inclusion, confidentiality and communication.

Who Are We Looking For?

An approachable, organised and proactive person who enjoys bringing people together, is comfortable and effective both communicating with others and using WhatsApp.

The role can be shared between two or more people, making it a manageable and rewarding way to contribute to our school community.

Interested in helping our community thrive? Please contact volunteer@ to find out more.

Have an Idea for a school event, activity or fundraiser?

We would love to encourage families to bring forward their own ideas for whole-school events, activities and fundraising initiatives throughout the year.

Whether it’s a community celebration, a sponsored challenge, a social event or something completely new, we’re always happy to hear fresh ideas!

Families who take the lead in organising a whole-school initiative will be given access to share updates directly through our Vineyard Community Announcements WhatsApp channel, helping them communicate with families and encourage participation.

Our aim is to make it as easy as possible for everyone to contribute, share ideas and help build a vibrant, welcoming school community.

Every contribution, big or small, makes a difference!

Please contact volunteer@vineyard.richmond.sch.uk to get in touch. 

 Volunteer Training

How to subscribe to our website calendar

Harvest Festival Collection

Thank you so much to all the families who bought in donations for our Harvest Festival collection. On Monday, the donations will be collected by a representative from The Vineyard Community charity, and they will be thrilled with our collection. Thanks again for your generosity. 

Extra-curricular Bookings for Autumn 2 

Due to the inset day on Thursday 22 October, and family consultations this Thursday, the Autumn 2 extra-curricular bookings will be on Tuesday 20 October 7pm