Newsletter September 2023
Dear Parents & Guardians,
We are approaching the end of September and I wish to thank you for your cooperation and support. Classes have settled back extremely well and it has been brilliant to watch our new Junior Infants adjust to life in such a busy school. The children appear very happy and have experienced many learning experiences since 31st August.
Some reminders and notices
Ms. Siobhán Fenton’s Retirement: Tomorrow will bring mixed emotions to Milford as we celebrate Ms. Siobhán Fenton’s last day in school. Siobhán, Assistant Principal, classroom teacher & special education teacher, has provided us in Milford N.S. with 32 years of devoted service. I don’t know how we will get along without her! In addition to her incredible competence and skill, Siobhán has been a friend to all with her thoughtfulness, support and encouragement. Her spirit of dedication and commitment to literacy initiatives, coaching of teams in hurling & football, promotion of the Arts, leading school improvement plans, mentoring newly qualified teachers and advocating for the needs of others would be hard to surpass anywhere. Siobhán has served for two terms on our Board of Management and has been instrumental in helping to provide the best possible facilities for our pupils & staff. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Siobhán for everything and to wish her the very best as she starts a new chapter in her life.
School Mass: A reminder that our Start of Year School Mass / Retirement Mass for Ms. Siobhán Fenton will take place in Milford Church tomorrow, Friday 29th September 2023 at 11:30am, for the whole school, Junior Infants – 6th Class Students. Everyone is welcome to attend.
If you do not wish your child to attend the School Mass you must collect them from the school at 11:00am on Friday 29th. You may return your child to the school after the mass ends at 12:45pm
Medication: Parents, please advise the school if your child has any medical issues about which you need to alert the school and for which indemnity and information forms will need to be filled out. I would also remind parents that medication already in the school may be out-of-date and may need to be replaced.
Nut Free Zone: As several of our children suffer from a nut allergy, please remember that Milford NS is a nut free zone. We ask that you do not send nuts / nut extracts or nut products in any form to school in your child’s lunch box and especially on treat days. This would include, amongst many others, products such as Nutella, peanut butter, chocolate spreads that contain nuts, cereal bars with nuts, etc. If you are unsure, please check the food label as ingredients can change and are not always obvious in the main packaging description. Thank you for your co-operation in this matter.
School Uniform Reminder: The uniform consists of a brown crested school jumper or cardigan, cream shirt or blouse and brown gymslip, skirt or trousers. Black or brown shoes should be worn with the brown school uniform (no Ugg boots please). This uniform is worn from 2nd to 6th. Under no circumstances should runners be worn under skirts or trousers. The school track-suit is worn on PE days. It is dark blue with a pale blue stripe and is crested. A light blue polo shirt may be worn underneath. Runners may be worn with the track-suit. If possible, runners with a light-coloured sole should be worn to prevent marking of the gym floor. The track-suit is the only uniform necessary for Junior, Senior Infants and First Class.
Entry to School Building: In the interest of health and safety, we are continuing to restrict entry to the school building except for people who have an appointment. If you need to collect your child early, drop off a lunch, etc please ring the buzzer or phone 061339123 at the main entrance (next to the Afterschool) and Rose, our school secretary, will attend to your request.
Church Car-Park: Please advise the person collecting your child in the afternoons to use only the designated spaces in the church carparks. Only vehicles displaying a Milford National School Parking Permit should advance past the church. Parents collecting children should not park in front of the Salesian Hostel. Please do not park your car in the drop off zone in the church carpark. The problem with parking has been largely alleviated due to the cooperation of our parent body and the enforcing of rules re unauthorised personnel etc.
Reminder to Label: Please label all your child’s clothing and belongings. Quite a number of uniform items have been handed into the school already this year. Unfortunately, the clothing items have no name labels attached.
Attendance Policy: The school is legally obligated to report to the National Education Welfare Board (NEWB) any child who misses more than 20 days in the school year. Please remember to explain all absences in writing (Aladdin App and/or by emailing office@milfordns.ie).
Aladdin Communication App: Aladdin Connect is our preferred way of communicating with parents. End of Year Reports, Standardised Scores, attendance information, money payments and school notices are available to view on the portal either through the internet (link on school website) or via the Aladdin App (free to download). Please contact the school via office@milfordns.ie or via 061339123 if you have trouble receiving messages or notices on Aladdin.
Update Contact Details: If your contact details (landline, mobile, email, address) have changed in the last year please contact the school as soon as possible with the correct information. You can also update your contact details via the Aladdin Connect App.
Online Payments: Classroom Requisite fees may now be paid via the school Aladdin School App / Portal. If families prefer to pay the amount in installments please let us know and we can guide you through the process on the Aladdin system. If paying in cash please place the money in a sealed envelope labelled with your child’s name.
Sports Activities: The autumn sporting season has commenced and football training is up and running. Many thanks to our very dedicated teachers who give voluntarily of their time and expertise to coach and organise teams, and accompany children to matches at this very busy time of the year. The coaches of the teams are as follows:
- U11 Girls Football – Mr. John Nelligan
- U13 Girls Football – Ms. Sarah Hayes & Ms. Caoimhe O’Neill
- U13 Boys Football – Mr. Kevin Daly & Mr. Diarmaid Moore
- U11 Boys Football – Ms. Emma Newe & Mr. Aaron Gallagher
Morning Club: The Rise and Shine morning club has a few remaining spaces available for September – June 2024. The morning club is supervised by Ms. Emma Dolphin and Ms. Geraldine Mitchell and runs Monday to Friday from 7:50am – 8:45am. Please contact emma.dolphin@milfordns.ie with any queries.
Shakin’ with Shakespeare: The “Shakin’ with Shakespeare” club has been running in Milford NS for 15 years. The pupils who have taken part over those years have thoroughly enjoyed learning about Shakespeare, and studying some of Shakespeare’s well known plays. The next term of Shakin’ with Shakespeare commenced on Tuesday September 20th 2023, and will continue on Tuesday afternoons. Please contact Ms. Murray if you are interested.
3rd Class Guitar: Ms. Angela Reidy and Ms. Caoimhe O’Neill are taking on new students from 3rd Class for guitar lessons. Please email: caoimhe.oneill@milfordns.ie if you are interested and we will send on the details.
Junior Infant Enrolments 2024: The Application Process and Admission’s Notice for Junior Infants 2023 will be published on our school website on 3rd October. The school will begin accepting applications for Junior Infants for September 2024 from Monday, 9th October 2023. The application form will be available to download from our school website from 9th October.
Meeting the Teacher: Parents can arrange an appointment to meet their class teacher (or SEN teacher) through the school secretary (061-339123), by writing to the teacher, via email at office@milfordns.ie
Parent to Parent Communication: Parent ‘WhatsApp’ groups have become increasingly popular in recent years. Similarly many parents are on social media sites and communicate with each other regarding their children – this can be great for birthday invitations, play dates etc. We remind parents that if they have a complaint or an issue they should call the office to make an appointment to meet with their child’s teacher. Please follow the Parental Complaints Policy which may be viewed on our website. We also remind parents that information or photos about children should not be shared on any social media.
Parent / Teacher Meetings: Parent / Teacher Meetings will take place this year during the week starting 13th November. Your child’s teacher will circulate further information in relation to the meeting after the mid-term break.
First Holy Communion: The date for First Holy Communion is Saturday, 11th May 2024.
Confirmation: The date for Confirmation has not yet been confirmed by the Diocesan Office. As soon as we receive the date we will communicate it with the 6th Class parents via Aladdin.
Environmental: Our Wildlife expert, Geoff Hunt will be in residence next Monday with 3rd class to explore the themes of “Trees, Leaves, Seeds and Insects”. Geoff has already worked with 1st and 2nd classes this year. The pupils have great experiences exploring the habitats of our surrounding environment. Geoff will also return in the spring and summer terms.
College Placements: During this term, we have been very pleased to welcome college students Alison Treacy, Louise King and Aoife Darcy. Alison is completing her college placement whilst Louise and Aoife are completing their final teaching practice.
New Staff: A warm welcome to new members of staff. Ms. Grace Quinlan and Ms. Mary Gohery are working as special needs assistants in our school for this school year. Ms. Ruth Kennedy, Ms. Laura Griffin, Ms. Caoimhe Ní Cheallaigh, Ms. Lillian Glynn, Ms. Emer O’Riordan, Ms. Emma Newe, Ms. Niamh O’Connell, Ms Rachel Hinchy, Ms. Laura Griffin, Mr. Kevin Daly and Ms. Noelle Hogan have all joined our teaching staff.
School Building Upgrades: A big thank you to the members of our Board of Management who have worked extremely hard to secure funding for the following building upgrades:
- school furniture replacement
- fire safety, lighting and signage
- floor replacement in five classrooms
School Show: The children are in the midst of their preparation and practice for our forthcoming anniversary concerts entitled “Ruby Times” which will be staged in the University Concert Hall on Tuesday, 5th and Wednesday, 6th December 2023. This will be an auspicious occasion, celebrating over 40 years of education and achievement, which we hope will be well-supported by all patrons of Milford National School. Professionally choreographed and produced by Dwan Academy, ‘Ruby Times’ promises to be a gem of a night… with memories to treasure. Details of arrangements for both nights will be issued in the coming weeks.
Best Wishes: Best wishes to Keith Earls and Paul O’Connell (parents in our school) in all their endeavours with the Irish Team in the Rugby World Cup. All in Milford NS are wishing them every success.
Parents, please refer to the school website for most school information – www.milfordns.ie.
As we all look forward to the new school year I want to once again thank you for your continued support, cooperation and dedication.
Le gach dea-ghuí
Diarmaid Moore
Principal
