Thank you to the many families who have emailed and tweeted to praise the hard work of school staff and the provision that we have put in place so far this lockdown.  Some of you have also emailed Ofsted which is wonderful.  Your messages are very much appreciated and have given us all a much needed lift.  Thank you for all of the support and hard work you are putting in at home.

Please can I ask that you also complete our Ofsted Parent View survey to make sure that they read and take note of positive comments about school at this difficult time.  We will be due for reinspection next academic year and your positive feedback and comments would be great for an inspection team to read.  You can complete the survey here: Give your views | Ofsted Parent View . Thank you so much for your ongoing support.

Are you suffering from domestic abuse or violence?  Do need support?  Click on the document below for important information about immediate help that is available to you.

Please remember to follow the one-way system both when dropping off or collecting children every day.  All adults should be wearing a mask on the school site.

You will have seen lots in the news recently about unacceptable food parcels being provided to children entitled to free school meals.

While our school is closed during this lockdown period, I can assure you that we will continue to provide parents of children entitled to free school meals with vouchers through 'Wonde' as we have done since the 5th January.  We are committed to supporting our children and thier families as much as we can throughout this challenging time.

We believe that it is important to celebrate achievements.  Each week, children may be given a gold letter from a member of staff or a certificate from Mr Dickinson, Miss Copestake or Miss James.

If your child has done something special outside school - maybe they have helped someone or done something special.  Tell us so that the Uplands community can share in their celebration. Email headteacher@uplandsmanor.sandwell.sch.uk 

Some children are sent to the Headteacher or Deputy Headteacher for a special award.  Congratulations to:

Each week, we will be posting a new story to our school sites. A different member of staff will be reading a variety of stories and setting you a challenge at the end of the story. This is a fun challenge for you to do as a family. If you have a go at the task, please tweet us pictures/videos or send them to your child(ren)'s teacher over Google Classroom - we'd love to see them! 

The first story, read by Mrs Sutton, is now on the school website, Twitter and on Google Classrooms. Go and have a look to see what the weekly family challenge is. Enjoy! 

Don't forget that, if you're looking for fun things to keep your children entertained, #BookTrustHomeTime is packed full of ideas! With reading recommendations, storytime videos, drawalongs, activity sheets, quizzes and more - there's lots to try: https://booktrust.org.uk/hometime

If you have an iPhone or iPad you actually have a scanner! Parents, if you are planning to scan any work to your teachers, you can use the ‘Notes App’.

Open a new note, press the camera button, the option to scan document will pop up.  Once the document is scanned you can email it easier than a photo, plus you can add notes to the scanned document.

The teachers have been phoning children to see how they are.  As they are having to use their personal mobile phones to make the calls, the number will show up as withheld or private.  Please answer the calls.  If you have answerphone facility, teachers will leave a message to let you know when they will call again.  

Please make sure your child is accessing as much remote learning as possible on Google Classrooms. Engagement has been really good so far - thank you for helping to make the best out of a very difficult situation.

Remember, you can contact your child's teacher for support at:

Some mobile phone networks are offering free extra data.  This scheme temporarily increases data allowances for mobile phone users on certain networks.  This is so that children can access remote education when they can't be in school.  

Schools, can request mobile data increases for children and young people who:

• don’t have access to a fixed broadband connection
• cannot afford the additional data needed to access educational resources or social care services
• have access to a mobile device that uses a participating network
• are facing disruption to their face-to-face education, or have been advised not to attend school

Children with access to a mobile phone on one of the following networks might be able to benefit:

• EE
• O2
• Sky Mobile
• Smarty
• Tesco Mobile
• Three
• Virgin Mobile

Other providers may join the scheme at a later stage.

The amount of data you could get depends on your mobile network. Some networks can’t offer data to Pay-as-you-go (PAYG) customers.

If you need more information, please contact the school office with the following information:

If you need pens, pencils, paper, etc to help your child with their remote learning, please contact the school office.  You will be given a time when you can collect a stationery pack.

At MAC Makes Music we're thrilled to announce the release of 150 FREE Musical Activity Packs for children and young people, to help them stay creative and engaged in music during this current lockdown period.

Families can request a free pack via a form on our website or give us a call, and we'll aim to post one per household to those interested, although supplies are limited to 150.

These packs are designed for families in the West Midlands with limited access to printers or internet, so we would really appreciate if you could share the info with anyone you think might benefit. Here is a link to our website in case you're able to share on social media to help spread the word. https://macbirmingham.co.uk/free-musical-activity-packs

Activities come with craft materials, parent/carer support guides, and of course a few musical surprises! Easy Read activity sheets are also available upon request.

To request a pack, families can complete this form or call 0121 446 3222

Blue Peter is the longest running kids TV show in the world and we are uploading videos to it that are suitable for 5-11 year olds. We have world record breaking challenges, arts and crafts, environmental videos, cooking and baking how tos, inspirational films, gaming, celebrity appearances, dance routines and music performances. We also feature ways of getting a Blue Peter badge, behind the scenes footage and extra content about our incredible presenters Adam, Lindsey, Mwaksy, Richie and Henry the Blue Peter dog.

If you think your pupils would be interested in this, please do send this out to your parents and ask them to subscribe to https://www.youtube.com/bluepeter - (it’s obviously completely free to subscribe!) and don’t forget to watch the live programme on CBBC at 5.00pm every Thursday, or on BBC iPlayer.

The Blue Peter Team!

The document below is a list of various support that is available to you.  There is information about organisations that are trying to give support for things like bills/food/emotional support.  

The Covid Winter Grant Scheme is a new government initiative, paid through the council, specifically to support households suffering financial hardship as a direct result of the impact of Covid-19.

The government has awarded councils money under the Covid Winter Grant Scheme designed for vulnerable households and families, with or without children, who are particularly affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

This means they are struggling to afford essential food and utility bills throughout the winter period and have no other available support.  

For more details, click on this link to the Sandwell Council website https://bit.ly/37TnUWX 

Dates of all events happening at Uplands Manor can be found on the calendar at https://uplandsmanor.sch.life/Page/Calendar