The Thomas Coram CE School

How have you shown: Kindness, Resilience, Respect and Thankfulness this week?

Newsletter 7
Friday 16 October 2026

"And I will be with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28 16:20

Important Information for w/c 19/10/26

Applications for Secondary School are open - Please ensure you apply before the deadline 31/10/26
Fri 23 Oct - Ella Beaumont Paralympian to visit Y3 and Y4
New HCL Menu after half term - Winter 26
Flyers at bottom of newsletter - Berkhamsted Fireworks, Game on Half Term Courses, 360 Vision Holiday Camp, Next Thing Education WOW Camps, Ashridge House Illuminated, Free SEN & PAN Disability Football Camp

Oracy Homework

Do slugs deserve to eat?

This Week

It has been a busy week this week, with trips and me doing more learning walks. On Monday the Kindness Ambassadors and I went to the Hope Food Bank, which was a lovely experience for us to hear about what happens at the Food Bank and for the children to take on the task of choosing items. Some children really reflected on things they needed in comparison to things the liked and some children made some great meals out of six items. On Wednesday, we had our School Effectiveness Advisor in to look around the school at Oracy. We were so impressed with the children's language and their hard work in every class. We then spoke to Pupil Parliament about how can we help improve the speaking and listening and I loved the idea of creating a sign to give the children more time to think if they need it. I was particularly impressed with the quote from Lucy in Year 6 on the fact TC Talk has really helped across the school as the confident children have now taken a step back and are listening more and children who are more quiet, are growing in confidence! Well done to Borneo today, for their fantastic class worship!

Worship

On Monday, Rebecca came in to talk to the children about The Burning Bush from the story of Moses, we had some excellent vocabulary described by the children as to how Moses would have felt hearing the bush speaking. Yesterday, I led worship on Harvest and we discussed the importance of the Harvest festival. Today Borneo wowed us with all of their learning!

Friends of Thomas Coram

🎅🏻 We’re doing it! 🎅🏻

🤶🏼 Today marks ten weeks til the big day, so we are officially…. LAUNCHING CHRISTMAS!!! 🤶🏼

But don’t panic. We’ve got you.

If you spend every single December night desperately scrabbling around for Elf ideas, we have a solution:

🎺 The Save your Sanity Elf Prop Pack is here 🎺

24 days of truly magnificent elf props to make that nighttime panic disappear.

BUT, there are only 100 of them and they’re already flying out of the door so get in quick:

https://buytickets.at/thefriendsofthomascoramschool1/2451798

The props come in suitably discreet brown paper bags so the magic doesn’t get lost and can be picked up from various points around Berko.

Now doesn’t that feel better??

Important Information

Frogs Kitchen Holiday Club!

The club is will run from Monday 26 to Friday 30 October, 8.30am–12.30pm.

The cost is £35 per morning or £150 for all five mornings, with all ingredients, lunch and a snack included. There are 20 places available each morning.

https://forms.gle/91yS1bRRVDd6ahxSA

Community Information

Dacorum Decorating Supplies (317 High Street, Berkhamsted) has a number of quality, trade paints that have been mixed incorrectly due to ‘operator error’ and/or mixing machine faults.

There is a good selection for both walls and woodwork - mostly internal. Brands include Crown, Dulux, Farrow & Ball, Little Greene to name a few.

Prices are as follows:-

10.0 Litres £12.50

5.0 Litres £10.00

2.5 Litre £7.50

1.0 Litre £5.00

Simply pop along to the shop, have a look at the colours (on the lids) and mention the Friends of Thomas Coram. The promotion will run from now until the end of December. All monies raised go to the school’s Parent Teacher Association.

This is a great way to buy some quality paint at bargain prices and help with recycling.’

The Christmas Programme at The Centenary Theatre is out and includes two popular children's shows.

Rod Campbell’s Dear Santa Live!
📍 The Centenary Theatre
📅 Sun 13th December 2026
🎭 Children's theatre (age guide 1+)
From the author of the well-loved children's book Dear Zoo, Rod Campbell, comes Dear Santa and it's LIVE! This show is an ideal introduction to theatre for those aged one and over. The Christmas cheer continues, with the opportunity to meet Santa in his grotto after the show, where every child will receive an extra special gift!

There's a Monster in Your Christmas Show

📍 The Centenary Theatre
📅 30th Dec - 3rd Jan 2026
🎭 Children's theatre (age guide 2-6)

Tom Fletcher’s interactive adventures for big imaginations are leaping from page to stage, as the beloved ‘Who’s in Your Book?' series tours the UK in a brand-new musical show. A high-energy 55-minute adventure featuring lively original music, this show is the perfect introduction to live theatre.
Expect plenty of playful fun for your littlest ones as their favourite characters come to life in a show that is packed with interactive moments to enjoy together.

Dens Sleepout

Take on a challenge with a real purpose. Give up your home comforts for one night and experience sleeping outside while raising vital funds for local people facing homelessness and hardship.
Gather your friends, family, colleagues, or community group and help support DENS' essential services, which provide preventative support, crisis intervention, and a pathway towards a brighter future for vulnerable people in our community.
Participants can look forward to:
😴 A secure, covered sleeping area
💛 A welcome pack and fundraising support
🎵 Live music, games, street food vendors and tasty treats
🎤 Inspiring stories about DENS' life-changing work
😋 A free breakfast to round off the experience

Weekly Attendance W/C 12/10/2026

Year 3 : 96.9%
Year 4: 93.2%
Year 5: 96.6%
Year 6: 96.5%
Whole school: 95.8%

Values in Action

Madagascar - Orla - For demonstrating a brilliant improvement in her resilience and engagement in English when writing her own story.

Gambia - Dane - For his resilience and positive attitude in writing this week and taking on board ideas from his peers to improve his sentences.

South Africa - Etta - For her amazing oracy skills, especially in maths and PSHE. She explains her understanding and thoughtful ideas clearly in paired and work and whole group discussions.

Norway - Kaia - For her focus and concentration when publishing her work this week, producing a fabulous persuasive speech.

Croatia - Elodie - For using strong oracy skills to perform her persuasive speech with a clear, projecting voice, putting emphasis on all the right parts.

Finland - Oliver - For his hard work and resilience in writing a very persuasive speech about why people should clean up after their dogs and for performing in front of the whole class.

China - Lily - For her kindness and thankfulness in class.

Borneo - All of Borneo - For showing all of our values this half term in supporting and helping each other, particularly this week.

India - Victoria - For kindness - being a great learning partner, working hard and contributing to lessons.

Brazil - Gabriel - For his resilience in maths, for showing brilliant attitude, answering questions like a mathematician and explaining his reasoning clearly.

Mexico - Lucy - For her resilience and determination in using commas in a variety of ways withing her sentences this week.

Peru - Jacob - For showing kindness to one of his peers when they were upset and being extremely supportive to help them feel better.

A full calendar is available here

Flyers

Next Thing Education WOW Camps

Our camps are packed with fun, hands-on tech, STEM and creative activities for children aged 5–12, providing parents with an exciting and convenient childcare option during the school holidays. Click on the link above for more info.

This week at St Peter's

Details of services at St Peter's can be found here.

To read the latest news from St Peter's click here.