SandownReception Class September 2025
Click here for our virtual tour
We warmly welcome you all to our Sandown family! We are delighted that you are considering or have accepted a place at Sandown for your child from September 2025 and we hope that this will be the start of a happy and positive relationship for all concerned.
You will be invited you all to come in and visit the Year R classrooms, meet the teaching teams, and the children will join us with a few visits over the last weeks of the Summer term in preparation for their start in September. Behind the scenes in Term 6, our teaching teams will meet with the various nursery settings gaining a picture of our new recruits all in readiness for their new school life with us.
The Application for Primary Intake for September 2025 is now taking place so do check on the detail via the online application process: www.kent.gov.uk/education/schooladmissions. If you, however, have just moved into the area or wish to consider Sandown for another reason, do please call the School Office (01304 374951) as soon as possible. Please contact the Office to arrange a tour of the school and Reception areas with Ms Luxford. This will give you a 'feel' of what we can offer.
We will be holding an evening meeting on Thursday 5th, June and at this time, Ms Luxford, Mrs Goggin, Mr Cooke and Mrs Palmer (YrR Class Teachers) will give you more detailed information about the Reception Year and how we support individual pupil’s learning in school. We will have samples of the school uniform, Whole School Meals are offering menu tasting, you will meet the School Nurses, our Breakfast and After School Club Leaders together with our SENCO, Mrs Horrocks. A busy evening which we hope you find interesting.
For the moment, we have put together some resources and information to help get the children ready for next September. Our teaching team for our Reception classes are Class RC ~ Mr Cooke (Class Teacher) and Miss Hibbert (Class Teaching Assistant); Class RP ~ Mrs Palmer (Class Teacher) and Miss Fay (Class Teaching Assistant).
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These photos show the areas of the school that the children will be most familiar with, day-to-day. Please share these with your child so that they are comfortable with knowing exactly what to expect when they are able to come in.
You will see from the website photographs how the school uniform looks, and you can find out more details on this, on our school uniform page. https://www.sandown.kent.sch.uk/Parents/School-Uniform-PE-Kit-list/. Uniform is purchased via our online provider, https://price-buckland.co.uk.
Whole School Meals are our school lunch provider. For all children up until the end of Yr2, they are entitled to Universal Free School Meals. From Yr3, the meals cost £2.50 per day / £12.50 per week, are available and you can choose on a daily basis if your child would like a school lunch or a home provided packed lunch. More information is available from Whole School Meals' website: www.wholeschoolmeals.co.uk and our school lunch information page: https://www.sandown.kent.sch.uk/Parents/School-Meals/. If you think that you may be entitled to Free School Meals at any point during your child's time with us, then apply via kent.gov and search for free school meals. The process is very quick and straight forward.
For our extended care services, Miss Roberts is our Breakfast Club Leader, and Mrs Lunny our After School Club Leader. Please see more information regarding these on our information pages: https://www.sandown.kent.sch.uk/Parents/Breakfast-Club/ and https://www.sandown.kent.sch.uk/Parents/Kidzone-after-school-club/
Getting children ready for school is very different for each of the children and families that will be joining us. Have a look at our Year pages https://www.sandown.kent.sch.uk/Pupils/Reception/, the Home Learning Journey https://www.sandown.kent.sch.uk/Parents/A-Home-Learning-Journey/to give you some ideas on what and who we are! We use a restorative justice policy for behaviour and this is reflected in every part of life at Sandown. Please find enclosed a summary that will give you an outline of how we support the children.
We have a Challenge! Look What I can Do! will help the children get used to dressing and undressing themselves - think getting ready for a damp playtime or when the sun comes out, we don't need a jumper on etc. Click here for a chart to download. Have a look at Getting Ready for some ideas of what to try if you haven't already made a start.
Have a look at this pictorial route to see how far your child has come!
Here's a great BBC game/video to help show the children the sort of activities they will have in school:
A reminder of the dates for the children's start in September:
Monday, 1st September - Inset day ( No children in school )
Tuesday, 2nd September - Yr1-6 start school
Tuesday, 2nd September - Older children 9:00-11:45
Wednesday, 3rd September - Younger children 9:00-11:45
Thursday, 4th September - Older children, including lunch 9:00-1:15
Friday, 5th September - Younger children, including lunch 9:00-1:15
Monday, 8th September - All Reception children, full time 8:35-3:00
* Children can bring a packed lunch in, or have a school lunch – whatever you prefer, and the children choose on the day.
** After Christmas, their finish time will change to 3.15pm as is the rest of the school.
