Miss Hamalis’ Bulletin – Monday 7 September 2026

Please find the email contact details of the staff: JS Key Contact information. Please could we ask that your specific query is directed to the appropriate individual and anything of a more serious nature is directed to a member of the Senior Team. Please note that Miss Hamalis needs to approve all requests for absences so please send them via the Junior School Office: jsoffice@channing.co.uk. 

In order to prevent unnecessary awkwardness and/or embarrassment, please remember to address members of staff by their title and surname. 

Please be mindful that staff may not pick up emails immediately (teachers will, of course, not be checking emails when they are teaching, running clubs or supervising pupils at break and lunchtimes) and may choose to take time to investigate the matter before responding. However, they will endeavour to answer your queries within 24 hours. Please do not think that a lack of instant response means a lack of interest on the part of the member of staff. 

Please note that staff are not expected to reply to emails outside normal school hours, weekends or during school holidays. If you have an emergency which needs to be dealt with before school next opens, please email: jsoffice@channing.co.uk. Please do not send communications or information to communication@channing.co.uk or info@channing.co.uk. 

You can find the Channing Promise on the school website. This is something the whole school community upholds and underlines our values of respect, tolerance and inclusivity. We know you will be nothing short of respectful in your communications with staff and you can expect the same in return.

To get to know our staff a little better and put faces to names, you can find out more: Staff Biographies.

On Friday 11 September, the girls will have individual and Junior School sibling photos taken. The girls can wear either their summer or winter uniform (see further information about uniform below in a dedicated section); however, we ask that siblings please wear the same uniform and for everyone to be smart and tidy with their hair fully back (if it is longer than shoulder length) with black, brown, white or Channing blue hair accessories. 

All girls should come into school dressed in their school uniform. Please can 4W and 4R bring trainers to school in a separate bag for their PE lesson.

We look forward to welcoming you to our annual Welcome Evening on Tuesday 15 September from 6.00 – 8.00pm. If you have two daughters at Channing Junior School, we advise parents/carers to split up to attend the separate talks. If this is not possible, or you are a single parent/carer household, please select one talk to attend. Please note that this is an adult-only event, so we kindly ask that daughters and other children are not brought along. All information from the evening will be shared on Firefly, our parent portal, after the event.

Reception, Year 1 & Year 2 ~ Fairseat Hall First 
Please note, if your daughter is in Reception, Year 1 or Year 2, you will be in Fairseat Hall first at 6.00pm. You will then go to one of your daughter’s year groups’ form rooms at 7.00pm to meet the year group Form Teachers and Teaching Assistants. 

Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 & Year 6 ~ Form Rooms First
If your daughter is in Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 or Year 6, you will go to one of your daughter’s year group form rooms first at 6.00pm to meet the year group Form/CoForm Teachers and Teaching Assistants. This will then be followed by a talk from Miss Hamalis (Head of the Junior School) in Fairseat Hall at 7.00pm.

We politely ask all parents/carers to please adhere to the one way system around school (following the signs). Members of staff will be available to point you in the right direction.

As per our Attendance Policy parents are requested to give advance notice to the school if they intend their daughter to be absent. Please write to Miss Hamalis (Head of the Junior School) via JSOffice@channing.co.uk with your request. 

Please complete this form outlining the days your daughter will be absent from school due to religious observance. 

Courses for Parents: Tooled Up Education

We have collaborated with Tooled Up Education: an invaluable digital library of evidence-based resources on all aspects of parenting, education and family life. Founder, Dr Kathy Weston, has collated the best and most up-to-date research from around the world and distilled it into usable, easy to understand resources which can be instantly applied to daily life. Channing Pin: cha0706

For upcoming Tooled Up courses and events please click here. 

• Monday 14 September 12.30pm ~ Introduction to the Tooled Up Platform and Team 
• Wednesday 16 September 12.30pm ~ Children and Young People’s Digital Lives: What the Evidence really says

At drop-off, the main wooden gates will open at 8.00am (the smaller side gate will not be open in the mornings); all parents and girls can come into the courtyard. Miss Hamalis or another member of the Senior Team will open the metal gates from 8.00am – 8.20am so that the girls will be able to go down to the playground where there will be staff supervising them. Please note that parents are to remain in the courtyard and are not to follow their daughter through the iron gates. At 8.20am, all Form/CoForm Teachers collect their form from the playground. Any girls arriving after 8.20am will need to go through the main entrance and sign in via the Office. 

Please note that the school opens at 7.30am for Early Birds only. It is important that you remain outside of the school gates with your daughter until 7:30am when a member of the Office Team will buzz you into the courtyard. May we politely ask that you do not follow staff into the courtyard or school before this time. 

Dismissal at the end of the day is staggered with Form Teachers dismissing the girls with the timings being the same every day. Parents collecting pupils in Year 1, Year 4 and Year 5 are invited to gather in the courtyard to pick up their daughters from the main iron gates, while collection from the side gate is for Reception, Year 2, Year 3 and Year 6. Please queue at the smaller door further down the hill on the side of the building. 

Any changes in collection arrangements should be emailed to the Form/CoForm Teacher(s) in advance. Anybody regularly collecting your daughter(s) should be added via the Firefly Parent Portal as normal (more information regarding the portal can be found below). We do not release children to any other people unless we have had a message from a parent/carer informing us.

Our Early Birds and Late Owls provisions are supervised by Let’s Leap, who also oversee the booking process. Please book sessions through the ‘Magic Booking’ online system, accessible via the Let’s Leap website. This system allows you to book sessions up to 3.00pm on the same day and offers easy options for adjusting or cancelling bookings.

Let’s Leap encourages all parents to register their daughter’s details on the Let’s Leap system, even if you do not normally make use of wraparound care, just in case your daughter needs to attend a session at the last minute. When registering your daughter’s details on the Magic Booking system, there will be options to add any relevant information about allergies or additional needs. This ensures that all necessary care and support can be provided during wraparound care.

You can easily amend or cancel bookings via the ‘Magic Booking’ system up to 12.00pm on the same day. If you need any assistance, you can call Let’s Leap’s friendly Customer Service Team on 020 3797 6386 or email them at milo@letsleap.co.uk.

Please ensure you log in to the Firefly Parent Portal to update your daughter’s consents for this academic year as soon as possible. This includes photo permissions and consent for school trips costing under £40. For Year 5 and 6, you will also find consents for the use of e-readers and permission to self-dismiss.

If your daughter in Year 5 or 6 attends an after-school club and you would like her to self-dismiss at the end of the club, please complete the new Club Self-Dismissal consent on Firefly. Your daughter will not be able to self-dismiss from an after-school club without this consent. Please be reminded that self-dismissal to the courtyard after the club is not permitted.

Please also take a moment to check that your daughter’s medical information is up to date, including any allergies, medical conditions and medication. Thank you for helping us keep our records up to date for the start of term.

Thank you, as always, for your support in reinforcing our uniform expectations at home. By working together, we can help keep the girls safe, ensure they can participate fully and confidently in school life and encourage them to take pride in their appearance.

As we begin the new academic year, please ensure that your daughter comes to school wearing the correct uniform. While the warmer weather continues, girls may wear either Summer Uniform (until half term) or Winter Uniform.

It is essential that all items of clothing and belongings brought to school are clearly labelled with your daughter’s name.

To help prevent the spread of head lice, as soon as your daughter’s hair can be comfortably tied back, it must be fully secured using brown, black, white or Channing blue hair ties, bands, or clips.

Girls should not wear nail varnish or jewellery, unless for religious reasons. Small, plain stud earrings are permitted, but small hoops or sleepers should not be worn for safety reasons. Analogue and digital watches are permitted; however, Fitbits and smartwatches should not be worn in school. We also ask that your daughter does not come into school with an AirTag in her bag, on any of her belongings or on any items of her clothing. These can cause disruption in lessons as staff receive numerous alerts on school devices.
Additionally, they may cause you unnecessary distress as they aren’t always accurate.

Please see the diagrams below as a helpful reminder of what the girls should and should not be wearing, together with a few key points to note. 

For details of the full uniform list, please see our website: Uniform List 2026/2027.

• Sensible black or brown ankle boots may be worn, depending on the weather. Ugg boots are not permitted due to a lack of support and practicality.
• One keyring only is permitted on rucksacks or bookbags, due to storage constraints in classrooms and cloakrooms.
• Black, brown or Channing-branded backpacks.
• Coats should be Channing brown, black, brown or navy. 
• Hats, hoods and earmuffs should not be worn indoors, for example during assemblies.

• During PE lessons and Games afternoons, earrings may be taped if necessary.
• For all fixtures, all jewellery must be removed, including earrings. Earrings may not be taped for fixtures.
• If a pupil is unable to remove her earrings for a fixture, she will sadly be unable to take part on that occasion.
• These expectations follow national sporting guidance. For example:
• The FA: All jewellery is forbidden and must be removed; taping is not permitted.
• England Netball: All jewellery must be removed before play (except a wedding band, which may be taped).
• England Hockey: Players must not wear anything that could be dangerous to others.

All girls have two PE lessons each week. On the day your daughter has PE, she should wear: a house-coloured t-shirt (Reception – Year 2 only), or a Channing PE shirt with the school tracksuit bottoms, leggings, skort or shorts. Suitable trainers must also be worn:

• Mondays: Rec C, Rec H, 3M, 3R, 6P, 6HK

• Tuesdays: Rec C, Rec H, 1M, 1EM, 2A, 2MW

• Wednesdays: 1M, 1EM, 3M, 3R, 4MP, 4W, 5F, 5S, 6P, 6HK

• Thursdays: 2A, 2MW, 4MP, 4R, 5F, 5S

• Fridays: 4W, 4R

On the days when your daughter has PE, we ask that she arrives at school in her PE kit. So not to miss lesson or break time, she will remain in her kit all day. It is important that your daughter has a complete change of uniform/kit (including underwear, socks and shoes) at school at all times in case of inclement weather. 

More information to follow regarding uniforms for extra-curricular clubs, ahead of the Autumn Term Club Programme starting on Monday 21 September.

All girls in Year 1 – Year 4 will participate in weekly Forest School sessions in our dedicated area. As the girls will be outdoors in all weathers – rain, hail or shine – we need to ensure they are appropriately dressed. 

Layers are great for keeping warm under waterproofs. All clothing should be clearly named and brought to school in a named backpack. 

Please ensure your daughter has a long sleeved t-shirt and leggings (or similar) to protect her skin from the plants and wildlife in the forest school area. 

Please see the list of items required below. Most can be purchased from our uniform supplier, Uniform4Kids.

• Waterproof jacket and waterproof trousers (separates are easier for getting dressed independently)
• Named wellies (which will be left in school)/ Fleece lined wellies or snow boots for the colder months
• Long sleeved top
• Sweater/ hoodie/ fleece
• Leggings or tracksuit bottoms 
• Warm socks 
• A thermal base layer, e.g. Merino wool
• Hat and scarf
• Gloves (preferably waterproof, not mittens)

Reception children will begin their Forest School sessions after half term, having utilised the time for independent learning and continuous provision across the first half of Autumn Term. On the day when Reception girls have Forest School, the girls are to arrive in their Forest School clothing (not PE kit) to remain in all day. Please send your daughter in her Forest School kit from Autumn 1 to allow her to practice the regular Forest School Routine.

Experience has shown that starting Forest School later in the Autumn Term benefits our youngest learners. It allows the girls valuable time in the Reception classrooms and outdoor areas, helping them to feel settled and secure. This approach also ensures they have time to adjust to routines before being asked to learn a new set of rules and supports them in making the best possible progress with their learning from the very start of the school year.

From the start of term, all girls in Reception – Year 4 should bring named wellies to be kept at school (children in Reception utilise these in their outdoor classrooms). 

On the day your daughter(s) have Forest School, please ensure she brings spare clean clothes (school uniform) and an extra named plastic bag for wet waterproofs or dirty over trousers: 

• Monday: 1M, 1EM, 4MP, 4W

• Tuesday: 3M, 3R

• Wednesday: 4R

• Thursday:  Rec H, 2A, 2MW

• Friday: Rec C

The girls (and staff) are very lucky to have a delicious and nutritious lunch every day. Please spend some time looking at the menu options for this term with your daughter on our website.

You are very welcome to send in nut-free cakes or treats for your daughter to celebrate her birthday with her form or year group. Please ensure that they are separate cakes or treats rather than a large cake that needs to be sliced. Additionally, please be mindful of the size of cakes; they should be no bigger than a child’s hand. Due to health and safety, please do not send in cake pops, lollipops or any other hard sweets. Furthermore, please do not send in treats for any other occasions without prior permission from your daughter’s Form/CoForm Teacher.

As part of our regular health and safety procedures, we carry out both fire and lockdown drills regularly to ensure that all pupils and staff are well-prepared for a range of scenarios. These could include events such as a wild dog on the premises, an accident on the High Street, or even an emergency helicopter landing at school – situations we have, in fact, had to manage before.

These drills are an important part of keeping our school community safe, and we always conduct them in a calm, reassuring manner. The girls are wonderfully sensible and take the drills in their stride, which helps to build their confidence and understanding of how to respond in different situations.

In line with Junior School policy, we do not inform parents in advance when these drills are scheduled, as this helps us maintain a sense of routine and normality. Our staff are carefully briefed to explain the procedures to the girls in a way that is both clear and age-appropriate, ensuring they feel supported throughout.

The aim is to foster a sense of everyday safety without causing unnecessary worry. The focus is always on staying calm, following instructions, and ensuring everyone’s wellbeing. We avoid introducing distressing topics, such as terrorism or attacks, unless pupils raise these themselves. If they do, we handle such conversations with great care and sensitivity. Our emphasis remains firmly on practical safety measures.

If you have any further questions or would like support for your daughter, please do not hesitate to contact her Form or Co-Form Teacher.

For the safety and comfort of everyone, please remember that dogs are not permitted on the school grounds. We have several pupils and staff with allergies, and some people are understandably nervous around dogs. In addition, we’ve had to clear up dog mess, which we’d very much like to avoid in future.

Thank you for helping us keep our school grounds safe, clean and welcoming for all.

The Channing Association (CA), run by parents, has three aims:

–  support the girls

–  foster a sense of community amongst Channing families

–  raise funds for charitable causes

We do this through events including Quiz Nights, Comedy Nights, Swimathons, and Winter and Summer Fairs, raising over £18k for charity last year. We also provide the girls with experiences, resources as requested by the school and even an ice-cream on Sports Day. Additionally we run preloved uniform sales termly. We’re looking forward to having a great year of fun and fundraising!

The CA is running a pre-loved uniform sale on Friday September 18 between 8-8.45am in the courtyard. For any donations of unwanted, clean and unlabelled uniform items (especially PE kit), please leave in the labelled blue bins in the courtyard. Thank you.

• Friday 18 September: Preloved Uniform Sale, 8.00am in the courtyard
• Sunday 20 September: Channing Marketplace, 11.00am- 2.00pm in the Senior Sports Hall
• Thursday 1 October: Quiz Night, 7.30pm in Fairseat Hall