10th June 2022
A Message from the Head...
As the final half term of the academic year began, we had a special visitor in school!
Rosie, a working therapy dog, visited us and spent some time meeting a number of our pupils. Everyone made a big fuss of her as you might imagine but she stayed cool, calm and collected throughout!
Rosie's visit was in preparation for us adding to our collection of animals within school - we already have a school rabbit (Flo Flo) and a menagerie of exotic creatures looked after by Ms Rayner.
Our newest addition, a school dog, is pictured below!
This little cutie is a Cockapoo and she is currently only 5 weeks old! She will join us once she has had all her vaccinations and, although she will need lots of rest and relaxation whilst she is young, we are hoping that she will become a full part of our school community as she grows up.
Outside of school she will live with Dr Newton and her family who will begin her all-important puppy training when she can come home with them at the beginning of July.
Pupils and staff are all very excited to meet her but the first task we have to navigate is choosing a name for her! If you have any ideas of an appropriate (preferably Gateways-themed name) please click on the button below to suggest it to us. Once we have a few names to choose from we'll put it to a final vote.
Please remember that Dr Newton is going to have to call out this name in public when she takes the dog for a walk though so please save her blushes and only suggest names that you would be happy to call out in a park with everyone watching you!
We have also been congratulating the former Miss Cook in school this week as she returned on Monday as the new Mrs Hallam. The beautiful picture above encapsulates the joy at the wedding last week as she and James became husband and wife. We all wish them the very best for their married life together.
This week also saw the return of our Careers Fairs with Lower 3 enjoying a day off timetable this week and Lower 5 doing the same next week. You can read more about the Lower 3 event in the Articles from Early Years and Prep section of this newsletter.
Finally, spare a thought for our intrepid Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme candidates as they spend this weekend on their final Silver Award expedition. I hope the sun shines on them, but not too strongly!!
Have a lovely weekend everyone.
- Dr Tracy Johnson -
Reception and Transition events
On Tuesday the sun was shining for two very important transition events to prepare our youngest Prep children and their parents for the next academic year in an informal way.
'Ready, Steady Reception' took place during the morning and 'Stepping into Transition' during the afternoon. These events gave parents the opportunity to meet with teachers, meet each other and get to know new families joining Gateways in September. Of course, the bouncy castle, games, cookies and pastries were well received too!
- Mrs Carol Bartle -
U13 Basketball team reach the Junior NBA North finals
There was a superb effort from our basketball maestros this week as they outplayed a, very classy, Bishop Young side to reach the North Finals, cementing their place as one of the top U13 sides in the country!
This is a remarkable achievement from a cohort of 35 boys in Year 7 and 8 going up against schools with 10 times that number to select from. They remain unbeaten this year and hopefully that will remain the same at the final which takes place at Leeds Beckett University in three weeks time - good luck!
- Mr Simon Scholfield -
Pupil news
Lucas's football success
Upper 3 pupil Lucas Kitson has been at the school for several years and was our very first KS1 recipient of the 'Sports Personality of the Week' award back in 2016 at the tender age of 6!
Lucas has continued to be a prominent member of all things sporting that Gateways has to offer but his first love has always been football.
He plays for UFCA and they recently won the Northern Region of the Junior Premier League, beating competition from teams including, Rotherham UTD FC, Chesterfield United UTD FC and Sheffield UTD U14 girls.
Lucas plays on the left wing and has done all season. He joined UFCA after playing for both Leeds and Harrogate Town. The club is run by 2 ex Man City Academy Directors. They video all their games using VEO so they can develop the players as a team and as individuals. Well done Lucas!
PFA Summer Ball Main Sponsor
The Gateways PFA Summer Ball is just three weeks away and planning is well underway. We have a fantastic team of parents working hard behind the scenes to ensure everyone has a fabulous evening. Thank you so much for all the generous prize donations we have received from the Gateways family. I am sure these prizes will aid our fund raising efforts as Raffle prizes, Golden Ticket prizes and Auction lots.
We have also been fortunate to receive support from our main sponsor, Moston Consultants. Here’s a little bit about them:-
Moston Consultants work across the Facilities Management, Property, Construction, Financial Services, Engineering, Logistics and Transport sectors. Based in the UK, covering the UK and EMEA, Moston have over 10 years’ experience delivering impeccable service and innovative solutions within recruitment and consultancy. They provide permanent, interim and fixed term contract resources in addition to standalone Asset Management and Management Consultancy services.
We are exceptionally grateful that Moston Consultants have chosen to support the Summer Ball and we look forward to welcoming them to the event in a few weeks time.
- Kathryn Dyer, Chair of the PFA -
Father's day breakfast - Friday 17th June
On Fridays, our dining hall is open to our parents, carers (and pupils) for breakfast. There's a wide choice of breakfast items available to purchase between 8am - 8.30am.
Next Friday to celebrate Father's day, we would love to see our Gateways dads! Full English and continental breakfasts will be available to buy between 8am - 8.30am and there will also be a little Father's day treat for Gateways dads! We look forward to seeing you there.
