FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
- How do I report a child’s absence?
- Please call the school office in the first instance, giving the reason for your child’s absence and an indication of how long you think your child may be out of school. If your child needs time out of school for an appointment, please let the school office know and please provide a copy of an appointment letter or other evidence of the appointment.
- How much are school dinners?
- School dinners are £2.40 per day for children in Nursery, and Years 3 – 6. Thanks to Universal Infant Free School Meals (UIFSM), school dinners are free for children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2. Children in any year group may bring packed lunch to school if they prefer. If your child would like to switch from school dinners to packed lunch, or packed lunch to school dinners, you must notify the school office in writing. We politely ask that lunch choices are only changed each half term, and not mid-way through a half term.
- How do I pay for school dinners?
- All parents are given log in details for our online payment system, ParentPay. School dinners should be paid for on ParentPay, and paid at least weekly in advance.
- What time is the school office open?
- The school office is manned from 8.30am – 4.30pm every day.
- What do I do if I need to make an appointment with my child’s class teacher?
- You may try to speak with your teacher at the beginning or end of each school day to make an appointment. Or, contact the school office by telephone, 020 8698 4173 or email, info@goodshepherd.lewisham.sch.uk.
- What do I do if I want to make an appointment with the Headteacher?
- Contact the school office who will be happy to make an appointment for you.
- Do you offer wraparound club or activities outside of school hours?
- No we don’t. We offer various After School Activities that take place after school, usually finishing at 4.15pm or 4.30pm. We are a signpost for Sugarplumz, a Before and After School Club who operate in the Church Hall. They drop off at our school in the morning and pick up from our school at the end of the day.
- What uniform does my child require?
- School uniform is important to us at Good Shepherd and we expect all students to wear it. The full list of uniform is available on this website under ‘Uniform’. Some items may be purchased from the school office and these are listed, together with price list. Any uniform purchased from school must be ordered and paid for on ParentPay.
- Where do I buy school uniform?
- We sell some items in school, namely, ties, rucksacks, green cardigans and sweatshirts, Nursery sweatshirts, fleeces, school sunhats/caps, green tights, PE bags. Other items may be bought from, eg, department stores such as Debenhams and Marks & Spencer, school outfitters, large supermarkets such as Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda. Contact the school office if you have any queries.
- Where will I find the school term and holiday dates?
- These are on our website and are also regularly published in our weekly newsletter.
- Can I take my child out of school during term time for holidays?
- Holidays taken during term time are never authorised by the Headteacher, and parents are reminded that it can be detrimental to a child to miss school as it can be very difficult to catch up. If you need to take your child out during term time, whatever the reason, please complete a ‘request for leave’ form at least two weeks in advance if possible. These forms may be requested from the school office and are also available to download from the website.
- How do I sign up to an after school activity?
- The timetable is circulated termly. You need to order and pay for places in after school clubs on ParentPay, using your usual log in details. Call the office if you have any queries.
- How can I contact the Governing Body?
- The Chair of the Governing Body is George Odeleye and he may be contacted via the
school office.
- Where can I get duplicate copies of letters sent home?
- You may request a copy from the school office, or download a duplicate from the school website, under ‘letters home’ in the ‘parents’ folder.
- How can I find out if you have places in your school?
- Please contact the school office.