River Mead School go to the polls

RIVER Mead School went to the polls to vote for a new class name for their nursery.

In September the Little Fir Tree Nursery will cease to be managed by the YMCA and will merge with the River Mead Nursery. To celebrate the merger, River Mead School decided to let the staff and children vote for a new name for the class, to replace the existing name ‘Caterpillars’.

“At River Mead School we take our democratic responsibilities very seriously, even from the age of two,” said head of school, Mrs Henderson.

“We are delighted to announce that following the election on Thursday 8th June the new name for the River Mead Nursery will be ‘Otters’.

“The turn-out for the vote was incredible, with the majority  of children and staff from the school  and  Little Fir Tree Nursery selecting from the list of four possible options.

“‘Otters’ was chosen with an overwhelming majority whilst ‘Dragonflies’ was chosen as the second favourite choice. 

“Staff from Little Fir Tree Nursery said that the children really enjoyed coming over to the school hall. They followed the signs to the polling station and carefully posted their papers marked with a ‘X’ in the ballot box.

Commenting on the choice of name, Mrs Henderson said, “Otters are playful animals and appear to engage in various behaviours for sheer enjoyment. This is very appropriate for our nursery where we provide children with opportunities to play, explore, be active, be creative in an enabling environment that offers a range of multi-sensory resources both indoors and outdoors, including water!

“This is a very exciting time for Otters to be joining the River Mead family. We have had two very recent confirmations of the huge improvements made at the school. 

“The deputy regional schools commissioner when he visited in April praised the practice in Year One and Early Years as ‘exceptional’.

“A representative for the Wiltshire Local Authority this week said ‘it is like walking into a new school.’

“She noted that the children were calm, focussed and talking with excitement about their learning. She interviewed the children to gauge their opinions on issues such as bullying,  behaviour and safety and commented that her favourite quotation came from Chloe in year 5 who confirmed that she loved coming to school, felt very safe and added, ‘Everyone has a voice, everyone is heard at River Mead School.’”

Otters will officially become part of River Mead School in September. For  more information and visits to the school please contact the office on 01225 703428.