Your Checklist

Firstly, don’t stress… We’ve got this!

If nothing else, here are the essentials:

• Have you given the Office the essential paperwork? Contact details, birth certificate etc
• Do you know our our start and finish times?
• Do you know where to drop off and collect your child to and from?
• Have you let us know if your child needs medication and/or has an allergy. Have you packed any necessary medication, including any inhaler?
• Have you made dinner arrangements – booked via Aspens or packed up a lunch?
• Clothing labels – have you written your child’s name in their coat and any other items they’re likely to take off?
• Water bottle – we encourage children to bring a bottle (labelled) and to drink regularly. Water only please though! 

Going a bit deeper.

Do you know when PE day is?

Do you know when Forest School Day is?

Have you checked if your child is eligible for Pupil Premium funding  – this is really important! There are full details on this page, but fee free to ask us if you’re unsure. 

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The Office have to see a birth certificate or passport for your child. This is a legal requirement for admission to school. 

Our team will give you a pack of other paperwork. Whilst all are important, the key things here are:

• Providing proof of your address or what is about to be your address
• Making sure we have the correct contact details right from day one
• making sure we have additional emergency contacts in case we can’t contact you directly

You’ll be asked for other information such as whether or not you consent to images of your child being taken and/or used in communications.

It is very important that we have all the information we need to keep your child safe, well and happy.

The paperwork for the office will capture medical needs and allergies and you can tell us more on the Getting To Know You form – see the next item on this list!

If your child has additional needs – for example a disability or barrier to learning –  we would urge you to meet Alex Taylor, our Special Needs Co-ordinator. You can contact her here: ataylor@parkdale.notts.sch.uk

If your child has needs that are more social or emotional, your key point of contact is our Pastoral lead, Jenny Walker: jwalker@parkdale.notts.sch.uk

If your child is new to English or is developing English as an Additional Language, our support co-ordinator is Darcie Parkin: dparkin@parkdale.notts.sch.uk

Inhalers and Medication

Children who use an inhaler should have one in school at all times. We have systems to manage this. Please ask at the Office.

By prior arrangement, our staff will administer medicines – again, ask at the Office.

This is our in-house online form for gathering a bit more information to help us support your child and work more closely with you. It really helps us to have this information if you are happy to provide it. It will ask about your child’s individual needs, educational history, languages in your family and community and more besides.

https://forms.office.com/e/Uf3gDnpxBQ

Pupil Premium is a vital source of funding for schools, who receive extra funding for every pupil entitled who is registered. It is used to provide lots of the additional help and support we have on offer in school. 

We would urge every family to check their eligibility and to apply if they can. It is quick, easy and there is nothing to lose. We’ll help if you need it – just ask!

In Nottinghamshire, this is done online or by ‘phone. Details here: https://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/education/school-meals/free-school-meals-and-milk

The link for Nottingham City residents is here: https://www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/information-for-residents/children-and-families/learning-and-education/education-and-schools/support-and-benefits-for-children-at-schools/

Every child from Reception to Year 2 is entitled to a free school meal. 

Don’t be put off applying for Pupil Premium by the fact that it s often referred to, for historical reasons, as “applying free school meals” because you get those free from Reception to Year Two anyway. Still apply for the funding if you can. It’s really important to our operation.

For children who are in care or who have previously been in care, there is a higher level of funding, called Pupil Premium Plus: https://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/education/virtual-school/nottinghamshire-virtual-school/teachers-and-social-workers/pupil-premium-plus

We want to see your child in school as often as possible, even if they are very young and in our nursery!

The key messages are:

• If your child is not going to be in, please let us know. We have to follow-up and investigate the absence if you do not.
• We do not authorise holiday in term time. The law does not permit us to do this. We can only authorise for genuine illness and exceptional circumstances such as the day of a funeral.
• We’d encourage children to attend even with minor ailments such as colds and coughs. its all part of learning to be resilient. If your child seems to ill or worsens in the day, we’ll send them home!
• We monitor attendance closely – we have to! – and have to report unauthorised absence and repeated absence that leads to a lot of missed school to the authorities, who may choose to intervene and/or take legal action
• If you are finding it difficult to get your child into school, please ask us how we can support. We really want to help. Your best contact is our Pastoral lead, Jenny Walker: jwalker@parkdale.notts.sch.uk

There is plenty of guidance here if you want more details:

Attendance info sheet for parents Sept 2024

Attendance Policy September 2024

Early Years Attendance 1Attendance Expectations and Support Autumn 2025

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To register, parents must first receive an invitation email from the school and then follow the link to set up their account on the Arbor Parent Portal or app. They will need to use the email address the school has on file, verify their child’s birthday, and create a password. After setting up the account on the website, they can then log in using the same email and password on the Arbor app. There is a full guide here and a summary below

• Click the link in the email invitation from the school.
• Enter your child’s birthday to verify their details.
• Enter your email address and choose the correct school from the list.
• Create a password for your account.
• Follow the instructions to complete the registration. 

• • Download the Arbor Parent App from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

• Accept the terms and conditions.

• Enter your child’s birthday.

• Enter your email address and select the school.

• Enter the password you created on the website to log in. 

• If you don’t receive an invitation: Contact your school’s office to confirm they have the correct email address on file.
• If you have trouble logging in:
  • Make sure you are using the email address the school sent the invitation to.
  • If the password reset link has expired (over 96 hours old), ask the school to send you a manual reset link.
  • If you still have problems, contact your school for assistance. 

Arbor is important – see above – it is the key to our communications.

Our website is the window to our school. We post news and information here, ‘live’ as it happens.

Each Friday, we send out a bulletin, capturing all the website posts from the week. This includes a diary for the coming weeks. We send a message via the Arbor app linking you to the bulletin as it is published.

If you follow us on Facebook, you will receive a notification every time there is a new item on the website. We are @parkdalecarlton

We aren’t on X/Twitter. We used to be but it became problematic. We are present on BlueSky, but we’re not very active there yet.

Every child in Early Years and Key Stage One (Y1-3) is entitled to a free school dinner. Dinners are ordered via Aspens, our caterers. For Y3 onwards, dinners are paid for unless your child is eligible for Pupil Premium (see separate item here for that).

• Go to the Aspens Select website at select.aspens-services.com/.
• Click the “Register” button on the login page.
• Fill out the registration form with your personal details.
• Complete the “I’m not a Robot” verification by clicking the checkbox and following any on-screen picture prompts to verify.
• Click “Register”. 

• • After logging in, you will be directed to the child registration page.

• Enter the school code and child code that were supplied by your child’s school.

• Click “Register child”.

• You can now view your registered child on the “View Children” page. 

We are a cashless school. Payments are by Parent pay. You will need an account.

1. 1. Activate your account:
      • Look for a welcome email from your child’s school containing a link to activate your account.
      • Click the link to set up a password. You’ll be guided through the process, which may require you to confirm your child’s date of birth as a security measure.
      • Note that this link may expire (e.g., after 96 hours).
   2. Download the app:
      • Search for “Arbor” in your phone’s app store and download the free Parent App.
      • For biometric login, ensure you have the latest version of the app (iOS 24.1 or Android 35 (24)).

• Log in:
  • Open the app or go to the website.
  • Enter the email address you used for activation.
  • Enter the password you created.
  • For first-time login on the app, you may need to enter your email and password and can then choose to save the password for faster logins. 

1. Add items to your basket:
   • Once logged in, navigate to the area for payments, such as school meals, clubs, or trips.
   • Select the item you want to pay for and choose “Add to basket” instead of “Pay now”.
   • You can add items for multiple children or different items in one basket to pay for everything in a single transaction.
2. View and pay your basket:
   • Go to your “Basket” (you can find a link to it in the top menu or via a notification banner).
   • Review the items in your basket. You can edit the amount for top-ups or remove items if needed.
   • Click “Checkout” to proceed with the payment.
   • If you have insufficient funds, you will be prompted to enter your card details to complete the payment.
3. Make a payment to a single account (e.g., school meals):
   • Click the “Top up account” button.
   • Enter the amount you wish to top up.
   • Click to pay and enter your card details in the pop-up window. You may need to authenticate the payment via your bank’s security measures. 

• If you can’t log in, ensure your school has your correct email address on record.
• To make payments for separated or divorced parents, the school can create a secondary payer account for the child. 

Have you checked the uniform policy and ordered everything you need? 

You can get most of our uniform items from supermarkets and general online stores, but we have a few ‘personalised’ items you’ll need to buy from either of our specialist suppliers.

Remember, if your child is in Nursery they don’t wear uniform.  If they’re in Reception or Year 1, they wear the activewear PE kit each day.

We’re an active, sporty bunch. We have Physical Education twice a week and we wear active sportswear on those days. We don’t change in school (that take sup too much time when we could be having fun!). We come in our school PE kit.

We’re active and outdoors in other ways too. Each class visits Parkdale Pines at least once a week. On those days, we encourage wellies, extra warm layers etc. We go out in all sorts of weather to boost our resilience!

We operate an unusual school day and morning drop-off. Full information about our school day is here.

Our school is a happy, safe place, but sometimes your child might need some extra care and attention. Make yourself familiar with how we keep children safe and what to do if there is a concern:

Website Safeguarding page

Safeguarding Policy

Safeguarding Guide for Parents and Carers

Our Relationships Policy, which covers how we deal with behaviour

Our Anti-Bullying Policy

A family guide to managing bullying

e-Safety

Complaints policy

Have you read our prospectus? You may have read it already, but it is worth a look through for more information about the kind of school we are and the things we offer.

You should be able to find all the documents and policies you need at the dedicated page on our website. You can always feel free to ask if you can’t find what you need!