Whole School Newsletter 13 March 2026

We were excited to welcome engineer, Halil Bedivi, who spoke in assembly about what it’s like to be an engineer and how engineers help solve real-world problems. He shared his journey into engineering and talked about the projects he’s worked on. One highlight was hearing about his work on the Bepi Colombo spacecraft and its mission to Mercury, launched in 2018 and due to arrive in 2027. A really inspiring talk to spark some great ideas for Junior Engineering Award entries! Another visitor this week was author Judith Eagle, who ran a workshop and book signing all linked to her new book, Blitz Sisters.

We have had trips galore - Year 6 visited the Imperial War Museum, Year 5 programmed robots on the Camden AI Campus, Year 1 visited the Science Museum, Year 2 recreated a Victorian workhouse in school and Reception visited the Horseguards Parade!

Our Reception and Nursery classes and teaching teams shone as one of only 100 schools selected by London RISE to share best practice in teaching maths that gives EP children the best opportunities. The feedback from our visitors was outstanding: not only did they see how maths can be taught in a structured, challenging and playful way, but they also saw the Life Skills and oracy that develops so well here.

Our Jackie Churchill has been at EP for 30 years! She completed a lap of honour in the playground to the applause of the children at the end of lunch break. We think that after 6,285+ hours of playground duty, working in class with over 900 children (and of course many more throughout the school) it was the least she deserves!

Next week you will read and hear about your children’s progress in our parent and carer meetings - please do come a little before your appointment so that you can read the carefully written reports. The focus of these meetings will be on how far your child has progressed and on how we can work together to help them reach their potential.

As we approach the final weeks of term we look forward to our end of term traditions, not least the Egg Race! Please remember the importance of these traditions for the children. We expect EP’s excellent attendance record to continue until the last day of term.

Next Week: The last week for Sports Clubs!

Monday

8am Y5/6 Dodgeball
Engineering entries in!
Dance presentation to Y4-6
3:30 Junior Development Football

Tuesday

Y1 & 2 Multi-Sports Club
Poetry by Heart - Let Rosie know if entering this competition

Wednesday

8am - Dawn Chorus Choir
9am - Lab Talk on Reading Habits
Parents’ Evening

Thursday

8-8:45am Y3/4 Dodgeball & Multisports Club
9:15am Year 2 Assembly
Diorama Theatre perform for Y4 & 6
Parents’ Evening

Friday

8-8:45am Junior Girls’ Fitness Fun
Stay & Play (not Year 2)
Year 2 to Waterlow Park - back for lunch
3:30- 4:30pm Y2-Y6 Gym Club
Nursery host the Snack Sale

Overview of key dates

Spring Term

Monday 16th March - Engineering Competition deadline
Wednesday 18 and Thursday 19 March - Parent Progress Meetings
Thursday 19 March Year 2 Victorian Assembly 9:15-9:45am
Wed 18 March 9am - Lab Talk on Reading Habits. For parents/carers of Year 2+
Friday 20 March - Stay & Play
Monday 23rd March - Lab Talk on Times Tables. Aimed at Y3/4 but Y2 welcomed too.
w/c Monday 23 March - Year 3 start a one week swimming block
Friday 27 March - The Great Egg Race and last day of term ending at 3:30pm

Summer Term

Thursday 23rd April - Quiz Fundraiser - Raise the Tower!
Wednesday 29th April Camden Choir Festival 6:30-7:30pm
Monday 4 May - Bank Holiday
Year 6 SATs tests Monday 11- Thursday 14 May
Friday 15 May - No Club EP or Gym Club due to staff event
Sunday 17 May - Run Kids Run tbc (awaiting confirmation from RKR)
Thursday 21 May - CBC Night
Half term Monday 25 - Friday 29 May
Monday 1st June - INSET day
Saturday 4th July - Summer Fair!
Friday 10th July am - Nursery Sports Day
Monday 13th July am - Sports Day Rec-Y6
Friday 17th July - Last day of term ending 1:30pm

Information and Diary Dates

Payments due

The end of term is fast approaching and it will also be the end of the financial year. In order for us to close the financial year, and to support us in managing the budget, please make all outstanding payments for this term before we break up. Thank you!

The Great Egg-Race!

The annual EP Great Egg Race will be 24 years old this year! For those new to EP, this is an end of the Spring Term tradition when children build a vehicle to carry a hard-boiled egg to race the length of the hall. Full rules of the race are at the end of the newsletter.

Families are welcome to come along to watch - race times are as follows:

Nursery, Years 1, 3 and 5 race at 9.15am and
Reception, 2, 4 and 6 at approximately 10.45am; however, we can’t be exact!

There is an adult race in the afternoon so you can get involved too!

Poetry by Heart

We are so excited to have introduced this year's Poetry by Heart competition to our Junior classes. This national competition is an opportunity for children to choose, memorise and perform a poem (or two) of their choice, with the finalists performing their poems on stage at the Globe Theatre! In class, we are looking at the range of poetry choices available and will learn one poem as a class to give the children strategies for memorisation.

Full details about the competition are available through this link Poetry by Heart

While we can give some help in school, please support your child to choose and memorise their poems at home. If your child is interested in entering the competition, either individually or with friends, please let Rosie Thomson know by next Tuesday 17 March.

Thursday 23 April - Quiz Fundraiser

Thank you to everyone who has bought tickets for this. They have sold out!

If you missed the boat, but are still keen to attend, please email epptaprizes@gmail.com

to be added to the waitlist.

Forest School pick-up from EP

Urban Outdoors run forest school clubs with an offer to collect from schools. With sufficient interest (a minimum of 8 children), they can offer EP a Thursday forest school club for 11 weeks 3:30-5:30pm in the summer term starting from 16th April. They will pick up children from EP for a session in Foxham Gardens and collection at the end of the club is from there. Urban Outdoors run these sessions for other nearby schools and they are very popular. More information here.

Urban Outdoors are fully independent of EP and whilst of course we will assist in the end of day collection arrangements and will ask families to authorise pick-up, please contact them directly for details of their offer and to explore whether they meet your childcare needs.

Progress Meetings

Thank you for booking progress meetings next week. Please check your booking time on Arbor and arrive sufficiently early to read your child’s report and look at their work. We run strictly to time, so unfortunately if you are late this will shorten the meeting time. A gentle reminder that meetings should not be recorded.

Primary Engineers Leaders’ Award

This weekend if the last chance to get inventive for the Primary Engineer Leaders’ Award.

To enter:

Draw and label the invention with your name, class and invention name on the back.
Write a persuasive pitch letter on a separate sheet, in best handwriting or typed and with spellings checked

Entries to Craig in Year 1 by next Monday 16 March.

Camden Educational Psychology Team Workshops for Families

Camden Ed Psych team are hosting two sessions for parents and carers which might be of interest.

Wellbeing and Resilience: A Positive Psychology Approach

Tuesday 17 March, 1:15pm–2:45pm
Crowndale Centre, 218 Eversholt St, NW1 1BD

Sleep (and boundary setting) in the early and primary years

Tuesday 24 March, 10:00am–12:00pm
Green Room, First Floor, York Way Depot