Life in Reception

Children should be dropped off in the junior playground, arriving no earlier than 8.25am when there will be a member of staff on duty, and no later than 8.35am. Children must not be left on their own until the teacher is on duty. The girls and boys then enter the building with their class teacher who collects them. Registration is at 8.40am in the Reception classroom each day.

We offer a Breakfast Club from 7.30 – 8.00am and a Before School Club from 8.00 – 8.25am for all pupils from Reception to Year 3.  This is a convenient option for parents if they have a child in an older year group as it allows them to drop the younger pupil off with a teacher before registration.  However, all Reception to Year 3 children are welcome to attend.

For further details including costs, please contact our Clubs Co-ordinator

Reception children will be handed over to their parents at 3.00pm in the junior playground. Reception parents should wait by the right hand entrance to the Ellis building.

If you’d like your child to be collected by someone other than yourself on any particular day, please inform us via the admin office. You may only take another child if a parent has specifically asked you to collect them and informed both Reception and the class teacher of the arrangement. This will prevent any uncertainties and ensures the safety of the children.

If a child is ill, parents must notify the school welfare officer immediately, as well as the class teacher and the admin team on reception, stating the nature of the illness. Parents are asked to confirm by email any absence of more than three consecutive days.

1. Email the Welfare team
2. Email the Admin team on reception
3. Email Class teacher, Mr Selby

All requests for leave of absence for pupils should be addressed to the Headmaster, at least one week in advance – leave of absence for periods of time adjacent to school holidays will not normally be granted.

At various stages during their school career some pupils may find parts of the curriculum more demanding. They will receive additional teaching support to help. The child’s parents will be informed of this and feedback on his or her progress will be forthcoming via parents’ evenings, termly meetings with the appropriate staff and the school reports.

A child who has English as an additional language and is experiencing difficulties in class as a result may need extra support. There will be a charge for this service. Parents will be contacted and, once the support is in place, there will be feedback from the appropriate staff as described above.

We offer a variety of Co-curricular clubs for Reception children, which are announced midway through the second half of each term.  Many clubs are free of charge and hosted by our staff.  Parents need to sign up for the clubs in advance and are then notified if their child has been successful in securing a place.  View further details on the Co-curricular clubs

After school club is available daily and runs from 3.00 – 6.00pm. It operates on a drop-in basis. Any child who has not been collected at the end of he day will join the after school club and a charge will be made for this additional supervision.

Staff operate a positive rewards system which recognises and encourages pupils’ behaviour, hard work and progress. When children start in Reception, they are introduced to the school’s credit system and begin to receive credits for their houses in line with the school’s reward system. Pupils are awarded certificates in weekly assemblies in recognition of their good behaviour, hard work and achievements. However, children are not always perfectly behaved and if they make the wrong choices they may receive a verbal reprimand, be kept back at break or be spoken to by the Deputy Head. If such behaviour is persistent, the class teacher will, of course, inform parents.

Children can bring fruit or raw vegetables in to school to eat at breaktime. Water is provided.

At lunchtime, children go into the Dining Hall by year group and eat together with their classmates.

View further information on Food and Nutrition, including our lunch menus.

To support children with nut allergies, parents are asked never to send nuts or products containing nuts to school as snacks.

Each Reception pupil takes home their reading diaries on Monday, to be returned on Thursday, then on Friday to be returned on Monday.

A weekly schedule and a 2-weekly curriculum update is provided on Teams to ensure parents are informed of what the children have been learning for the previous fortnight, as well as what’s coming up in the following weeks.

Communication to parents is via email, a weekly newsletter and the school website. The Mall uses SchoolPost for emails and texts which may need to be sent to parents quickly in an emergency or when there has been an unexpected change to the school routine (e.g. cancellation of games, late return from a school trip etc.).

Should you wish to speak to your child’s class teacher, please email them to make an appointment, allowing 24 hours for a response.

The school does not wish to prevent parents from taking photos or filming events which involve your child.

However, there are some circumstances when photography or filming are not permitted. Firstly, for some school plays we are required to purchase a performing licence where we would be in breach of copyright restrictions if photography or filming were to take place. In this situation a member of staff will inform parents at the beginning of the play of this restriction. Secondly, parents should absolutely not film or take photographs in the swimming pool or changing rooms.

For other events we ask that if parents are taking photographs or filming they show consideration to other parents by not being so enthusiastic that they spoil the occasion for others by getting in the way. We also ask that if the photographs or film you take contains images of children other than your own you do not upload these to social media sites.

Our Health and Safety Policy explains how pupils are treated if ill or injured and how parents are contacted if necessary. A copy is issued to parents when a child joins the school. His or her medicines and inhalers must be handed to the admin office, rather than the class teacher, for safekeeping and administering.

Please confirm your child’s health problems or allergies to the school Welfare Officer, as well as any special dietary needs.

Reception pupils have a reading diary twice a week and a phonics/handwriting sheet once a week. All pupils are expected to read for about 10 – 15 minutes each night, recording progress in the diary.

From Autumn term, Reception pupils are placed in one of four houses: Corpus, Magdalen, Pembroke and Trinity. As well as competing in their houses for sporting events and competitions such as general knowledge quizzes, art and music, children can earn credits for their houses through good work or behaviour.

The MSA supports the school via fundraising and social activities, including fun events like our annual Summer and Christmas Fairs. If parents would like to volunteer to join the MSA, they are welcome to contact the MSA Chair

Pupils will be provided with logins for online learning sites. These will be written in their reading record at the beginning of the school term.

Parents’ Evenings take place early in the Autumn Term and every term thereafter.

This meeting with the class teacher covers the children’s’ daily routines and activities, reviews their progress and provides parents with the opportunity to chat about general information.

The Mall School Parent Portal is a communication tool which gives parents quick access to information about their child, including attendance records and assessment reports. Parents can also book events and Co-curricular activities through it.  If you’re new to the school, you’ll be sent login details just prior to your child starting with us.

Parents are reminded that, in the interests of safety, they must not stop on the zigzags outside the school. Please show consideration for our neighbours and local residents by taking care not to obstruct the entrances of offices, houses or flats close by, nor park in their car parks or driveways.

Children are also told that they must not cross the road except at the pedestrian crossing, even if accompanied by an adult, and parents are asked to reinforce this elementary road safety policy with their children.

Reception children begin swimming classes in the first complete week of term after the initial settling-in period.  Swimming lessons take place on a Tuesday.

They also have a PE lesson every Monday on-site.

View or download the School’s policies >> 

The school creates content for social media, marketing and publicity purposes.  If you do not want your child’s photos to be included in any publicity, please notify the Marketing Manager in writing.

Otherwise the school reserves the right to include your child in any publicity material, eg news releases, prospectus, school email newsletter and magazine, school website, social media etc. Your child’s name will not be included, unless parental permission has been given to do so.

Children in Reception receive a ‘settling in’ report before the Autumn half-term.

A full written report for pupils in Reception is printed and distributed to parents in the last week of the Summer term; this gives parents a written summary of a child’s progress against the early learning goals.  The reports are positive but honest and will highlight pupils’ strengths as well as suggesting areas for improvement.

Parents can ask to discuss this report with the class teacher or receive a copy of the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile. For any other personal files on their child, please request in writing from the Headmaster. Information pertaining to a third-party will not be disclosed.

The school currently operates a morning minibus service which transports children to the school from Kingston, Brentford/Osterley, Isleworth, Richmond, Sunbury, Walton on Thames and Chiswick. These routes are subject to change according to parental demand.

• Children from Reception upwards may use the minibus.
• Children who arrive on minibus services prior to registration, will be supervised by The Mall School staff until registration.
• Spaces on all minibuses are subject to availability.
• A full term’s notice is required if withdrawing from the minibus service.

Email our Clubs Coordinator for further information on minibus routes, including prices.

We believe that trips and experiences play an important part in your child’s education. The Mall School provides a superb range of exciting trips and experiences for each year group. Reception children have enjoyed days out to Bocketts Farm and Kew Gardens, for example, this year.

The pedestrian gate is locked from 9.00am until 2.50pm each day and admission during this time is via intercom to the school reception. At lunch and break times all pupils are supervised by members of staff. No child is allowed off the school premises unless supervised by an appropriate adult.

2024-5 School Uniform

Items in bold are school regulation pattern and can only be obtained from Stevensons, 1-5 Heath Road, Twickenham. (Tel: 020 8892 2201) twickenhambranch@stevensons.co.uk www.stevensons.co.uk  All items are compulsory unless specified otherwise. Summer uniform may be worn from September to October half term and for the whole summer term. Pupils should either wear winter or summer uniform, not a combination of both.

Winter

• Mall School blazer or Mall School coat in cold weather
• Mall School grey v-neck jumper or cardigan
• Mall School white polo shirt

• Long grey trousers or Mall School pinafore
• Gloves are optional but if worn must be plain black gloves
• Short charcoal grey socks or grey tights
• Plain black shoes (Velcro). Not trainer type.
• Mall School rucksack
• A scarf is optional but if worn must be a Mall School scarf
• A hat is optional but if worn must be a Mall School hat

Summer

• Mall School blazer
• Mall School grey v-neck jumper or cardigan

• Mall School white polo shirt and

• Grey shorts (flat front, single pleat, not cargo style) or
• Mall School Summer dress

• Short charcoal grey socks with shorts

• Short plain white socks with summer dress
• Plain black shoes (Velcro). Not trainer type.
• Mall School burgundy sunhat

• Mall School rucksack

PE  and swimming kit

• Mall School white and burgundy polo shirt
• Mall School white and burgundy shorts
• White socks
• White Velcro fastening trainers with non-marking soles
• Mall School drawstring PE bag
• Plain black base layers may be worn under polo shirt and shorts in colder weather (no track suits)
• Mall School black and maroon  zipped mid-layer top optional

• Plain black speedo swimming briefs (must be tight fitting) or plain black swimming costume
• Mall School swimming cap
• Mall School swim bag
• Goggles
• Towel

Jewellery, especially earrings, can present a hazard to both the wearer and other children taking part in sports activities. Therefore children are not permitted to wear jewellery, including pierced earrings, during sports activities.

Teachers are not allowed to take out or replace children’s earrings if they are unable to do so themselves. Taping of earrings is not allowed.

Therefore, please could parents remove their children’s earrings on the days when sporting activities take place. Children are responsible for their own earrings if they are taken out at school.

If a child has recently had their ears pierced and is unable to remove their earrings, they will not be permitted to take part in the practical aspect of sports activities for six weeks, after which time they will be expected to remove their earrings in order to participate in lessons. We therefore ask that if a child is having their ears pierced this takes place at the beginning of the summer holiday.