3rd May 2024
Dear Parents
We are thrilled to announce that Harpenden Academy has been crowned the Small School Football Champions!
The highlight of the week has been the result of the Year 3 & Year 4 boys' football competition. I am beyond proud to say that Harpenden Academy has finally won a tournament! We are the proud winners of the brand new shield for football. This has been a long time coming but I'm hoping this will open up the flood gates to more awards in the future. Miss Harvey has written a blow by blow account of the event which is below but I just wanted to say how thrilled we are.
This week on Wednesday, Miss Harvey and Mr. Leung took a group of nine Year 3 and 4 boys to compete in a football tournament at Sauncey Wood Primary. It was a sunny day, and the atmosphere was buzzing with excitement as all the Harpenden schools gathered for group games, leading up to the semi-finals and finals.
Our team faced a tough group with High Beeches, Kimpton, Crabtree, and The Lea. The tournament got off to a fantastic start with Rex scoring two sensational goals, earning a loud cheer from the coaches and children. We secured our first win, giving Harpenden Academy a boost of confidence. Miss Harvey was thrilled, and the team felt ready for the next challenge.
Our second match was against High Beeches, who were in excellent form. We took an early lead through strong teamwork, but High Beeches managed to equalise just before half-time. The second half was intense, with both teams creating scoring opportunities. Winston made some incredible saves to keep us in the game.
In the third match, we faced Kimpton and scored another team goal, thanks to Joseph and Winston. Wilbur's solid defence ensured a clean sheet, securing another 3 points. The final group game was against Crabtree school, and our team delivered another outstanding performance, winning 2-0. With group play concluded, we awaited the final results to see if we had qualified for the semi-finals. We finished second in our group, just behind High Beeches on goal difference. Despite not having a field of our own, this was a remarkable achievement for Harpenden Academy.
As it turned out, we secured a spot in the semi-finals, facing St. Nicholas, while the other semi-final was between High Beeches and The Grove. This was only the second time Harpenden Academy had reached a semi-final, a testament to the hard work of our team and coaches.
The semi-final match was intense, with both teams giving it their all. After a thrilling 12 minutes of regulation time, the score was 0-0. The game went into extra time, but neither team could break the deadlock. This led to a penalty shoot-out, a nerve-wracking way to decide the winner.
Winston made a crucial save, setting up Alfie for a chance to put us in the lead. Unfortunately for St. Nicholas, their second penalty taker missed, giving Joseph the opportunity to secure the win for us. Calm and collected, Joseph scored, sending our team into the finals and our supporters into a frenzy of excitement.
The team’s effort and determination were truly commendable, and we look forward to their continued success in future tournaments.
Our boys' football team made it to the final against The Grove, and while the result didn't go our way, we are proud to be the top small school in the competition.
The team’s success is a fantastic achievement, and we want to highlight the sportsmanship and humility they showed throughout the tournament. After their win against St. Nicholas, the boys were gracious in victory, serving as excellent ambassadors for our school.
As we celebrate this accomplishment, we also want to wish our girls' football team good luck in their upcoming friendly against St. Dominics and their tournament in a couple of weeks. We're looking forward to more success on the field and the continued demonstration of teamwork and respect. Great job, everyone!
Bank Holiday Monday
It's raining outside and it's cold and wet which can only mean one thing - it's a bank holiday weekend! Please remember school starts back on Tuesday, 7th May and for the children in Year 3 you will need your swimming stuff!
Welcome to Ellie Ratliff, Our New FoHA Chair!
We're thrilled to announce that Ellie Ratliff has joined us as the new Chair of FoHA. Ellie brings energy and enthusiasm to the role, and we're excited to see the fresh ideas and initiatives she'll lead. Please join us in welcoming her to the team and supporting her as she works to make our school community even better. Welcome aboard, Ellie!
Considerate Driving and Parking Reminder
We encourage families to walk to school whenever possible. If you need to drive to school, please do so thoughtfully, keeping in mind the safety of our children, other parents, and the wider community.
We kindly ask that parents and visitors to the school follow the parking rules and drive carefully near the school. Please avoid parking in a way that could block driveways and stop traffic flow. Our local residents are becoming increasingly annoyed as parents are parking in their spaces in the flats over the road.
We did have a rather unpleasant incident last night which resulted in raised voices and accusations - this isn't what we want to have outside our school and for the children to hear. As well meaning as the intention may have been, it was just lost in angry adults and teary children. I know how frustrating the parking situation is outside school but we can't start parking in the neighbours' flats and we can't start arguing in the street. Please bring any incidents to me and I will handle them appropriately so tempers don't get frayed.
Your cooperation helps ensure a safer environment for everyone. Thank you for your support.
New Date - Class Photos
We have moved our class photos to Monday, 3rd June 2024.
Announcement: Upcoming Price Increase for Magicbookings
Laura and I started the present guise of our before school and after school club in approx 2016/2017. We have not increased the cost of these clubs since then and have actually actively fought against it as we know that the financial living crisis and COVID affected us all. Sadly, we can no longer carry on with the cost of after school club and breakfast club remaining the same cost when everything around us has increased in price. We have therefore had to re-evaluate our pricing for Magicbookings. While we have managed to keep our rates unchanged for the last seven years, we now need to adjust our prices to ensure we can continue to provide quality breakfast and after-school club services. I'm sorry.
The new rates will take effect in September 2024, and we're giving parents advance notice to help with planning. Even with this increase, our prices remain competitive compared to other local after-school clubs.
Additionally, we want to remind parents that the booking window for the Summer 2 term opens on Monday, 6th May and closes on Friday, 17th May 2024. Don't forget to secure your spots within this time frame.
We appreciate your understanding and thank you for your continued support. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.
The new costs:
- Breakfast Club - £7.50
- Stay & Play - £15.00 for 5.15pm and £20.00 for 6.30pm
Reminder: Family Fun Science Evening, Thursday 16th May 2024, 6.30pm-8.30pm
This is a free event and no tickets are required. Please RSVP via the Edulink form by Monday, 13th May 2024 as the numbers will give Mark an indication of how much equipment he needs to bring.
Lovely Mark the Science man is returning to school in May but for the adults this time!
Mark holds a family science evening where teams - usually family members put their science wits against each other in a very family friendly science competition. Last year the science activity was based upon the Mars Rover dropping on Mars without breaking. We used an egg and dropped it off the balcony!
If you have been to one of Mark's family science events you will know they are huge fun and not at all competitive. The children are welcome and often come in to school in their PJs so they can go straight to bed afterwards. Mark will be returning on Thursday, 16th May, 6.30pm-8.30pm.
Happy Birthday this week to: Dean, Tommy, James D, Jake S and Lolah Rose
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