Welcome back after the Christmas break. I hope you all managed to have some time to rest and relax at Christmas, whether it was with friends, family or others. This half term is a short one but we have lots to look forward to. We have a full half term with visitors, events and amazing learning. Watch this space for more details. Lots of our children received a letter from Anna Gelderd (our local MP) thanking them personally for their entry into the Christmas card competition. They should all be proud of themselves for their efforts! What a week for weather it has been from snow and ice at the start of the week, to a storm on Friday, it really has been an interesting start to the term! Thank-you to you all for your understanding in these challenging weather conditions. I know that decisions to close or open the school have a large impact on all of you. The safety of children, families and staff is paramount. Can I please urge you all to ensure that we have at least two contacts for each child including emails. This is to allow us to contact you in case of an emergency. Finally, following interviews this week, I am delighted to let you know that we have appointed Mrs A Colquhoun as a replacement for Miss Bawden. She has been working in the school for a while now and already knows the children and has many years of experience that she will bring to Darite. She will be a welcome addition to the team at Darite.

9th December 2025

Just like that, we have reached the end of the Autumn term! The weather hasn't exactly been Christmassy but the songs and festive cheer have been felt in school! The children have been enjoying their final week with some learning and fun Christmas activities. The Pirate Game is always a hit in KS2 and Class 1 have been making some amazing crafts, Christmas lunch was again superb on Wednesday - Thank you to Anna for putting on such a delicious spread! The children had great fun with their parties yesterday. Thank-you to the PTFA for providing the food - there was so much that we were able to enjoy a snack this morning! Is was a sad day yesterday as we wished Miss Bawden well as she left for the next stage of her journey. We know she will be missed but has promised to come and see us all in the new year. All that is left for me is to wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy new year from everyone at Darite. Whatever you do and wherever you go, we hope you have time to relax with family and friends over the festive period. We are looking forward to welcoming the children back to school on Tuesday the 6th January 2026!

It's beginning to feel a LOT like Christmas in Darite. The school have embraced the festive season and have had a wonderful week baking festive treats, making cards and decorations and loads of other activities and fun. It is hard to believe that we only have one week left before the Christmas break! Our Reindeer Run was featured on the St Luke's Facebook page here. The children loved raising money for the hospice. We raised £267.80 for St Luke's Hospice. The whole school went to sing to the village Christmas dinner on Wednesday. They sang beautifully, clearly and their performance was thoroughly appreciated by the members of the club. It is becoming a tradition at Darite and is part of being part of the community! Thank-you to everyone who joined in celebrating our Nativity yesterday. I'm sure you will all agree that the performances were superb along with the singing. Thank-you to all the children for doing so well and to parents and carers for helping with lines. We raised £52.00, thank you all. Finally, don't forget that there is still time to purchase your tickets for the PTFA Christmas Raffle. Tickets were sent home last week but if you didn't receive them (or need some more) please let teachers know. There are some amazing prizes on offer. Winners will be chosen on Tuesday 16th December and informed by email. The PTFA will be in the playground after school on Tuesday to allow winners to collect their prizes, if you are unable to collect your prize will be left in Reception. The Christmas jumper swap was well received last Friday after school. There are lots of children who are proud of their new threads going into Christmas. Thank-you to Mrs Richardson-Calladine for arranging this. She has also said that the Lighthouse Community Centre have agreed to re-house the jumpers that were not required. They will be shared with those in the community who need help and support. It is with great sadness that we say farewell to Miss Bawden at the end of term. She has been a valuable member of the team at Darite for a number of years, and she will be greatly missed by children and staff alike. I am sure you will join with us all in wishing her the very best for her next adventures and we hope she will keep in touch. Although next week is the last week, we are still very busy. Christmas dinner and Christmas jumper day is on Wednesday. Please make sure that you have booked a school lunch in plenty of time. We are also having class parties on Thursday. We are requesting small donations of party food so that the children have a treat in the afternoon. This party food will not take the place of lunches and children should still bring a packed lunch or order a meal. Finally, next Friday is a half day and children can be collected at 1.30 from the normal place. If you will be unable to collect at this time, please let us know so we can put plans in place.

It's been a great week at Darite. Thank-you to those parents and children who braved the weather on Saturday at the Liskeard Lights Up parade. It was wet and wild but the children represented the school amazingly and the lanterns got lots of praise from the crowds! It was lovely to see the parents and carers in the hall on Tuesday for Class 1's "Crafternoon". The decorations look amazing and it really is beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Talking of Christmas, the reindeer run for St Luke's hospice was a great success again yesterday. The children looked amazing and their antlers really set the mood! Sarah from the hospice was amazed by the money we raised all of which will go to support this charity. Next week is our nativity on Thursday. Tickets are selling like hot cakes so get them on ParentPay while you can! Children should also have come home with a sheet of raffle tickets for the PTFA raffle. There are some great prizes on offer so please, if you can offer them around, all money raised will support the school. If you need more sheets, let us know! Can I again remind you that if your children are going with another parent, please let the office know either by phone or email before 12.30. If plans change after than time, please email Mrs Lake or myself so that we can release the children. If we do not have confirmation from a parent or carer, we will have to contact you to check which can delay the end of the day. We appreciate that sometimes plans change last minute and we will contact you if that is the case. Thank-you for your understanding. A reminder too that the final day (Friday the 19th) is a half day and children can be collected at 1.30. If you will be unable to collect your child, can you let the office know so we can plan accordingly. Finally, we are lucky to be part of the Parental Engagement Framework this year. This is a county-wide initiative designed to further link the community, parents and school together to support all members of the school community on aspects that are important to school and the future. Part of this work is working with a parental "Steering Group". This is a small group of parents or carers who will work closely with myself on guiding this process so that it benefits the school. If you would like to be part of this group, please let Mrs Norris know and I will arrange a meeting with you in the new year.

What a busy week it's been at Darite! Christmas rehearsals are in full swing - it promises to be a great performance. Tickets are now available on ParentPay for the two performances on the 11th December. The whole school had a wonderful time at the Eden project yesterday, exploring, skating and learning. Please see some of the wonderful pictures below. Thank-you again for the community donation which made the trip not only possible but free! Darite is a very special community to be part of. Tomorrow is the Liskeard Lights Up parade and some of the children from Class 2 will be walking with their amazing lanterns that they made last Friday. We hope to see you there (hopefully the weather plays ball). The event is meeting in the Cattle Market at 5pm and the parade begins at 5.30. It would be wonderful to see lots of children there but a reminder that they need o be accompanied by a parent or carer who is responsible for them at the event. Finally, a few pieces of housekeeping. We are a nut-free school due to children and adults having allergies to nuts. This includes sandwiches with chocolate and nut spread in them. Thank-you for helping to protect members of the community. From Monday, can we ask that children attending breakfast club enter the school through the main door and the bell is rung to alert staff. This will maintain site safety in the morning.

It's been another great week in Darite. The children loved having an assembly by "Rock Steady" on Wednesday with children (and staff) playing instruments in a rock band! There will be more information coming to you all soon as this group also run tuition. On Friday Class 2 had a willow-weaving workshop to create lanterns ready for next weekend's Liskeard Lights Up! The theme was "Anything Goes" and my word they had some great ideas. Thank you so much to Biddy for coming in to lead the day. The children had a great time and the lanterns look AMAZING! Next Thursday we have our whole-school trip to the Eden Project. There is no cost to this thanks to the amazing generosity of a member of the community. Please make sure that you have given permission for this trip on Parent Pay.

Welcome back to Darite after what a I hope was a relaxing and pleasant half term break. This is one of my favourite half terms of the year with the run up to Christmas, performances and lots more trips and activities! Congratulations to our new school council who were elected this week to make the school an even better place. They will be meeting regularly and already have some great plans - watch this space! Next week we welcome Sarah Wallis from St Luke's hospice back into school to launch this year's Rudolph Run. The children had an amazing time last year and raised a fantastic amount of money for this cause which helps so many families in our community. The annual flu nasal sprays are on Thursday next week. All children in school are eligible for this and we highly recommend that children are vaccinated before the flu season really kicks off. Please see the previous correspondence to give permission if you have not yet done so and would like to take up the offer. Finally, next week if the BBC Children in Need appeal. To help raise money for this amazing appeal, next Friday will be a non-uniform day. Children can come in non-uniform or spotty clothes for a £1 donation. We are also asking for kind donations of cakes and treats for a cake sale at breaktime and lunchtime on Friday. Because of allergies in school, please could you provide a list of ingredients so that all children can enjoy a treat.

We have had a fantastic week of learning at Darite. Class 1 have been learning about Charles Macintosh and waterproof materials. They conducted an experiment to find out which materials repel water the best. Class 2 had an amazing afternoon with a group of people from Sterts who came in to work with them as part of a series of drama workshops. Thank you to everyone who came to our Harvest Celebration. The children really enjoyed cooking for you and performing their songs. We are extremely grateful for the food donations which will be collected by Liskeard and Looe Foodbank next week. Congratulations to all of the runners who took part in the East Cornwall School's Cross Country race at Great Trethew last Friday. The next race is on Friday 14th November at Lanhydrock. Next week we have the Autumn Term parent consultations. If you haven't booked a slot but would like to meet with Mrs Lake or Mrs Morris please book using Arbor. If you have any problems, or can't find a suitable time, please email Mrs Norris. Entry to the parent consultations will be through the main reception where you will be able to wait until your appointment. Clubs will continue to run as normal next week but school is closed to pupils on Friday for a staff INSET day.

Yesterday the children had a treat in assembly when Mrs Clavier came to demonstrate brass instruments along with the Sydenham Damerel Blowers. If any of the children are interested in learning to play a brass instrument please let us know and we will pass on their details. Mrs Clavier will become a familiar face in school this term as she will be teaching Music Technology to Class 2 every Tuesday starting on 21st October. Thank you to the Cornish Music Service Trust and AsOne for this wonderful, funded opportunity. Today we enjoyed an autumnal tidy up in the Wild Tribe areas as part of Mental Health Awareness Week. Research shows that being outside for 20 minutes a day can help to improve mental wellbeing significantly. We are very lucky to have an amazing environment in which to do this. Next week we look forward to welcoming you to our Harvest Celebration on Wednesday at 2pm. We will not be charging an entry fee, instead could you please give what you can to our collection for the Liskeard Foodbank. Please note there is also an Early Reading parents meeting at 1.45pm on Wednesday where you can find out more about how to support your child with learning to read.

We have had another fantastic week at Darite! The total so far for the sponsored triathlon is an amazing £497.20. Thank you for your support with this the PTA and the school are incredibly grateful. Thanks must also go to our PTA who work tirelessly for the benefit of the children. Today we say goodbye and thank you to our trainee teacher, Melanie, who has been with us for the last 3 weeks. She heads back to Switzerland tomorrow and we are going to miss not having her next week. You may have heard the children talking about Christmas cards this week. We have been designing them for our annual fundraising event and you will soon be able to order their unique designs. More details to follow in a couple of weeks. Booking on Arbor is now live for Parent Consultations, please contact us if the available times are inconvenient. We love having time to sit down and talk about your children with you and will do all we can to accommodate this.

It's been a busy week at Darite again. The trip to the Cornwall Museum yesterday was brilliant. The children had a great time learning about childhood in Cornwall and the toys that were played with. They have come back with some amazing knowledge that will be really helpful in their learning. The sponsored triathlon is also taking part today. The children are really excited to take part and the number of bikes and scooters is testament to their fitness. Thank-you to everyone who has managed to sponsor the children. Every penny raised will be used to support the learning and providing experiences for the children at Darite. Stay tuned for the final total. Thank-you to the PTFA for their support in running the event too. It has been a wonderful start to the term and we are always looking for ways to make Darite even better. We are again looking at interest for extending wraparound care at Darite. There will be a message going home in the near future asking for your feedback including if you would use it, how often and then when you would need it for. Once we compile the responses, we can look at how we can support moving forward. Finally, can I politely remind you that children should not be using the trim train before or after school. This is a safety and insurance issue and, like you, we want to keep the children safe during the school day.

It has been a rather soggy week this week but the children have been able to brighten up the school with their smiles and positive attitudes. It has been busy with photos, clubs and learning but the children have worked hard in their learning. Next week sees the sponsored triathlon on Friday and the whole school trip to the Cornwall Museum in Truro on Thursday. Sponsor forms went out for the triathlon this week. All children will be able to take part and every bit of money raised will go towards supporting the school and children. Can you please ensure that you have given permission and paid the donation for the Truro trip on Parent Pay. If we do not receive enough payments to cover the cost of the trip, we will unfortunately need to cancel. Finally, as we get into the new year, can I please ask everyone to continue to respect the residents who live around the school. This is particularly true at drop-off and pickup times as it is sometimes hard for them to move cars with parents parking on the zig-zags outside of school. This is for safety of the everyone in our community.

Our first full week of this academic year has been wonderful with lots of learning, smiles and positive attitudes. Children have settled into their new classes fantastically and have been supporting new children wonderfully. As we start the new year, could we please remind you to keep us updated with any changes to address or contact details. It is important that we are able to contact someone about the children at any point of the day in case of emergency. You are able to do this yourself by logging into Arbor or, through the office. There are a few interesting and exciting things coming up over the next few weeks. The calendar on the website is up to date with current events so please make sure you check in regularly. Clubs start next week and they are proving popular as always. Please make sure that you let Mrs Norris know if your child would like to take part. Photos are next week on Monday. As it is PE for all children, we are asking that they come in uniform and then change for the afternoon session. I have been asked to bring your attention to Pam Adam's piano lessons. This year she has space for her in-school lessons. If your children are interested, please let the office know. We also have been sent information from the Marine Biological Association (who worked with the Lego team last year) that their Rock Pool festival is being held next weekend at Porthpean. There are leaflets in the noticeboard and outside the office if you are interested.

We are all delighted to welcome you and your children back for another brand-new year. We also welcome new families to Darite I hope that whatever you and your family got up to over the break, you were able to find time to relax and enjoy the weather. It has been amazing to hear the things that the children have been up to and the places that they have been able to go over the summer. This year at Darite promises to be another year full of exciting learning, fun activities , new challenges and memorable experiences for the children at Darite. The staff and I have been working hard on preparing engaging and fun lessons designed to help every child enjoy school and achieve their very best. It was wonderful to see the children being excited about being back yesterday and to have to opportunity to speak to you on the playground. We really appreciate and value the partnership that we have between home and school and the positive impact it has on supporting your child's growth and success in school. We are always happy to help and are looking forward to working closely with you again this year. PE will continue to be on Monday so children will need to come into school in their kits. Class 1 will continue to have Wild Tribe on Friday and Class 2 will have a Wild Tribe day each term. We will be sending out club lists next week with a view to starting on the following week. 

This is the final full week of the academic year! It seems like only yesterday, we were welcoming the children back in September! We have had a full final week to finish this term. Before we even got to school on Monday, we were celebrating our winning entries at the Liskeard show! You may have seen the art and crafts that we entered at the weekend, and we were delighted to bring home not one but two first-prize rosettes for the third year in a row! Congratulations to all the children! On Monday, the weather (mostly) played ball for our sports day. The children had a great time trying the different games and activities, finished with the tradition that is the Year 6 Round-School Run! Thank-you to everyone who was able to come and cheer the children on! Tuesday saw the whole school have a great day at Hidden Valley. The children loved the maze and the mansion and worked hard at solving the puzzles. Thank-you to the PTFA for funding the coach and keeping the cost of the trip down. Their support for activities and fund-raising is invaluable and we thank their members for their continued support of the school. We were all star-struck on Wednesday with Class 2's amazing performances of "I'm an 11-year-old - Get me out of here!" The children have worked tirelessly - learning lines, positions and the songs and it all came together for two brilliant performances. We have some understudies step in last-minute and were amazing. Thank-you to the children for their hard work and to everyone who supported with learning lines and costumes. I am still processing the video of the performance, but this will be available on request next week. Finally, this afternoon as you read this, the children will be enjoying the summer disco! An opportunity for them to celebrate their successes this year and look forward to the summer as well as, in some cases, the next steps on their journey to secondary school. A reminder that, along with the leaver's assembly for Year 6 on Monday, next week the children can be collected for the holiday on Tuesday at 1.30. Can you please let us know if you are unable to collect your children at this time. Have a fantastic weekend and we're looking forward to seeing the children on Monday for the final few days.

Welcome back after the half term break. Although the weather this week hasn’t felt like summer term, the whole school had a brilliant Wild Tribe Day on Wednesday, learning art, survival skills and teamwork! It was great to see the children working so well together. It was lovely to see babies and toddlers at Mini Miners on Tuesday. They were enjoying the soft play, arts and crafts and the other toys on offer. Remember, if you or anyone you know have children from birth to 4, pop along each Tuesday for a natter, play and some refreshments in the school. We have been invited by The Morrab Library in Penzance to give children the chance to enter a short story writing competition. There is no theme so the amazing writers at Darite can let their imaginations run wild. There is absolutely no expectation for children to take part but, if they want to, the details of the competition and prizes can be found here. Going out today is a short letter with details of the classes and staffing next year. I am pleased to say that there are no changes to the structure this year and the school continues to go from strength to strength. Thank-you for your support this year – Darite is a very special place to work and learn. Finally, it is with sadness that we wish Mrs Saberton good luck today as she leaves for her new role at Liskeard Secondary. She has been a pillar of Darite for many years and will be missed by the children and staff alike. I know you will join with us in wishing her the best and I know that the children going to Liskeard in Year 7 will already know a friendly face. Thank-you for everything you have done for the children. 

This half term has passes in what seems like a flash! This half term has flown by and has been filled with amazing experiences and learning. Thank-you for everything that you all do to support the school. I have had the pleasure in showing some new (and returning) pupils and parents round this week and all of them have said what a special and friendly place Darite is. We know it but it is fantastic to show others. Thank-you to you and the children for making Darite so special. Highlights of this term include the Lego competition, the trip to Deer Park Farm, Mini-police, Parliament sessions and much more! Looking ahead we have swimming, sports day, plays, more trip and loads more still to come. Finally, it is with some sadness that I want to share with you the news that Mrs Saberton is sadly leaving Darite next half term. She is starting a new, exciting journey, supporting children at Liskeard school. She has been an integral part of Darite for a long time now as a teaching assistant, midday supervisor, friendly face and a listening ear and she will be greatly missed by us all. We are excited for her new role and know that she will be fantastic in this as well. I know our Year 6 will like seeing a friendly face in September too. I hope you will join with us in wishing her the best. I am delighted to let you know that Mrs Nel will be taking over in Class 1. She has been doing a wonderful job in Class 2 and knows all the children really well. We are lucky to be able to have such a strong team of staff at Darite. This newsletter is coming out on Thursday as we have an INSET day tomorrow. I would like to wish you all a relaxing half term and we are looking forward to seeing the children back on the 2nd June for the final half term of the year!

It's been another busy week with glorious weather and lots of outdoor learning for the children. Thank-you for sending children in with sun-cream applied and in bags so that they can re-apply it. We also ask that hats are also worn - it is amazing to be able to get out in the sun but we all want the children to be safe. This week was a big one for Year 6. They sat their end of KS2 SATs this week with tests in reading, grammar, spelling, punctuation and maths! Regardless of their results, each and every one of them gave 100% and their attitude during the week was fantastic. They all did amazingly and should be proud of themselves. Next week is the final week of this half term - it's flown! The staff have an INSET day on Friday so the last day for the children will be Thursday. Even though it is the last week of half term, we are still launching our new toddler group "Mini-miners". This will run in the hall each Tuesday from 9.45 until 11 and is a chance for children aged 0-4 to come along with their adults and enjoy some arts and crafts, soft play and much more. It is open to all and is free of charge. If you know someone who may enjoy this group, please let them know. We're really looking forward to seeing everyone next Tuesday.

The weather really has taken a turn for the better this week with the children able to take advantage of our amazing grounds. It's been another great week with lot of things going on to tell you about. Firstly I would like to thank everyone for their support of the Lego team who travelled to Harrogate last weekend to compete in the national finals. We were so proud of them to reach the final and were over the moon with the fact that they came 8th in the whole country in the coding section of the competition. We could not have done it without the support of the school community and it really shows what a special place Darite can be. To find out more details of this superb achievement, please look at the previous blog post Thursday saw VE day with the whole school celebrating the end of the Second World War in Europe. We learned all about the day, why it was special and why it still matters today. We also learned from a pupil that Jersey (one of the only places to be occupied by the Axis powers in WW2) has a "Liberation Day" holiday on the 9th as the news of the end of the fighting didn't reach the island until a day later. We also sampled some delicious flag biscuits to celebrate. We also welcomed Tom from the UK Parliament Engagement Program to KS2 this week. He came in to talk about the way parliament works, how laws are passed and why the building is so important. Thank you to Tom for giving up his time.