School Games Mark

We are delighted to announce that we have achieved the School Games Bronze Mark Award for the 2018/19 academic year.

The School Games Mark is a Government led award scheme launched in 2012, facilitated by the Youth Sport Trust to reward schools for their commitment to the development of competition across their school and into the community, and we are delighted to have been recognised for our success.

Our sporting achievements this year include:

A10 Active Y3/4 Multi-Skills Festival - 2nd Place

Hoddesdon LTC Tennis Festival - 2nd Place

Y3/4 Football Inter-Primary Cup - 2nd Place

District Cricket Tournament - 3rd Place

Girls District Football Tournament - 3rd Place

Prime Cheerleading Competition - 3rd Place

With many young people competing in local inter-school competitions this year, we are extremely proud of our pupils for their dedication to all aspects of school sport, including those young volunteers, leaders and officials who made our competitions possible.

As part of our application, we were asked to fulfil criteria in the areas of participation, competition, workforce and clubs, and we are pleased that the hard work of everyone at our school has been rewarded this year.

A special thanks to all the members of staff that have assisted Mr Mac with competitions and clubs this year.

We look forward to applying once again in 2020!

Prime Cheerleading Competition

Our KS2 Cheerleading Squad entered the Prime Cheerleading competition on Thursday 11th July. This was an opportunity for schools in the local area to compete against each other and showcase what they have been working on over the year.

The Forres Flyers Cheerleading Squad were absolutely fantastic and achieved 3rd place in the competition. Thank you so much to Laura at Prime Cheerleading for all your help and support this year.

Sports Day 2019

We hosted our annual school Sports Day on Friday 5th July, which was well attended by parents and guardians. Thankfully we had some lovely weather for the day and the children were keen to showcase some of the skills that they had covered throughout the school year. All the pupils tried their best as they attempted to win points for their classes in a number of events including; javelin, speed bounce, obstacle course, target throw, target racquets, racquet balance, netball shot and golf putting. 

After all the points were calculated we are pleased to announce that the following classes won their Key Stage Trophies which were awarded to the classes in assembly on Wednesday 10th July;

EYFS: Hampstead

KS1: Knightsbridge

KS2 Lower: Marble Arch

KS2 Upper: Waterloo

Thank you to all the parents and guardians for cheering the children on throughout the day and to the Y5 pupils that helped Mr Mac and Mr Jones for the day! We look forward to seeing you all again next year! 

District Sports 2019

On Thursday 27th June we took a KS2 team to District Sports hosted at John Warner Secondary School and organised by ourselves. Due to the poor weather we experienced on the original date of the event on Tuesday, it was decided to move District Sports to the reserve date of Thursday. 

Pupils competed in various races and competitions throughout the morning including; throwing, standing long jump, 400m, sprints, bean bag race, obstacle race and the relay. The event was participated in the right spirit and all the pupils from Forres conducted themselves in the right way and tried their best in every event. Despite not having many Y6s as they were away on their PGL trip, we picked up enough points to finish in a credible 8th place overall, with many of our Y5s having to compete as Y6s, as well as competing in their own events.

A huge thank you to all the schools that supported Forres with organising this event and to John Warner Secondary School for hosting and providing their Sports Leaders again.

Sports for Champions Sponsorship Event

As part of National Sports Week we invited Sports for Champions in to school for a sponsored fitness circuit. All pupils have worked hard raising money for this event which culminated in participating in a fitness circuit on Wednesday 26th June hosted by GB Athlete Montell Douglas. The circuit consisted of completing as many reps as possible of spotty dogs, press-ups, sit-ups and star jumps. 

After the event, Montell, gave an assembly detailing her athletic career and some of the obstacles she had to overcome in order to be successful in her field, winning a Commonwealth Gold Medal in the relay and then making the switch to Bobsleigh. Once the assembly had concluded children that had raised the most money were invited to take a picture with Montell as a reward.

The event was a big success with the pupils raising £1,017 in total with 60% coming back to the school and 40% going to Sports for Champions to help raise money for athletes so they can continue their training and represent GB at the highest levels.

Thank you so much to Montell Douglas and Sports for Champions for organising this event and a huge thank you to everyone that raised sponsorship money, it is greatly appreciated!

Essex Outdoors Harlow Trip

On Monday 24th June we took a group of 20 pupils to Essex Outdoors in Harlow for an Outdoor Adventurous Activities trip. The group consisted of Y6 pupils that did not go to our PGL trip and some Y5s that have demonstrated a brilliant attitude in PE this year.

The day consisted of three main activities including; rock climbing, low-ropes and canoeing. This was a great opportunity for pupils to try different sports and activities that they may never have been exposed to before. It was lovely to see the pupils gain confidence in themselves whilst trying these new activities and all the children thoroughly enjoyed the day. 

We hope to book a similar trip next year and we thank Essex Outdoors Harlow and their staff for a well organised trip.

HDSSA Cricket Tournament

On Friday 21st June we entered a team of Y6s into the HDSSA Cricket Tournament hosted and organised by John Warner Secondary School. The tournament consisted of a group stage and then the finals. During the group stages we won one game and lost one game which qualified us for the 3rd/4th place final. After a very long day in the sun the cricket team did extremely well to win the final match by a single run, which meant we finished the tournament in 3rd place. The whole team played brilliantly and improved as the day went on.

Thank you to John Warner Secondary School and their Sports Leaders for hosting and organising this event.

A10 Active Inclusive Festival

On Tuesday 18th June, Forres Primary School selected a group of pupils to represent KS1 in an Inclusive Festival hosted at Haileybury Turnford, organised by A10 Active. Many of the pupils selected have been participants of our popular Forres Fighting Fit Club in partnership with Rivers ESC. The festival consisted of a number of stations, allowing the pupils to showcase some of the skills they have been learning including; teamwork, balancing, orienteering, target throwing, ball control and catching. 

All the pupils that attended really enjoyed the afternoon and were each presented with a certificate in our Friday Celebration assembly. Thank you to A10 Active for organising this festival and to Haileybury Turnford for hosting.

FitMedia Fitness Testing

On Monday 10th June we welcomed FitMedia back into school to complete our end of year fitness testing with the KS2 pupils. Each class had a 30 minute slot where they were tested on their agility, power, strength and balance. All these measurements will be reported back to us so we can see how much the pupils have improved over the year and we will also be able to see if there are any fitness components we need to try and improve for next year. 

Thank you to Mr Jones and FitMedia for organising the day.

Y6 Girls Football Tournament

On Tuesday 4th June, our Y6 Girls Football Team competed in the HDSSA Girls Football Tournament hosted by Cranbourne Primary School. This was the first opportunity of the year for the girls to play in a competitive football tournament and they were very excited.

During the group stages the girls did really well winning two games, drawing two games and only losing once. This meant that we finished in second place in the group and qualified for the semi-finals. The girls put in a fine display against Westfield Primary School but unfortunately lost the game 1-0. We still had the 3rd vs 4th Play-off game to play for against Roselands Primary School and another fantastic performance in an end-to-end game saw us win 1-0 and finish the tournament in 3rd place overall. A fantastic achievement for all the girls involved.

Many thanks to St Cross Primary School for organising this tournament and for Cranbourne Primary School for hosting.

Y5&6 Girls Rugby Club

On Tuesday 14th May we started our first ever girls only Rugby Club organised by England RFU. Our coach, Tom, will be in for the next eight weeks to help promote the sport for girls in Year 5 and 6. The first session went down very well with 10 girls attending and lots more that seemed keen to get involved next week. Hopefully we can inspire a few of the girls to try a new sport and maybe even participate outside of school too!

Year 3/4 Inter-Primary Cup

On Friday 10th May, Forres Primary School entered two teams into both the football and netball competitions of the Year 3/4 Inter-Primary Cup. This event was hosted by John Warner Secondary School and was well attended by all the local primary schools. 

The football and netball competitions were split into an 'A' Team and 'B' Team format which consisted of a group stage, progressing into a knockout stage to determine the overall winners. The netball teams unfortunately failed to qualify for the knockout stages but should be commended for their attitude and enthusiasm throughout the tournament. With the majority of the netball squad competing for the first time, I am sure they will continue to improve.

The football teams faired better in their competitions with the 'B' Team getting some positive result to finish the tournament 4th overall. The football 'A' Team qualified from their group without losing a single game and managed to progress all the way to the final before losing 3-0 to Cranbourne. This meant the 'A' Team finished the tournament as runners-up. A fantastic achievement for all the pupils involved.

Many thanks to John Warner Secondary School for organising and hosting this event! 

Chance To Shine All-Stars Cricket

Chance To Shine were back in to school on Thursday 9th May to provide our KS1 children with an All-Stars Cricket Taster Session. In the morning our coach, Dan, delivered an assembly to classes in Y1 and Y2 explaining what All-Stars Cricket is and how to get involved. After that each class in KS1 had a 45-minute cricket session focused on different elements of the game including, catching, bowling, batting and teamwork.

The pupils seemed to be really enthusiastic about the sessions and we hope this will inspire many of the children to actively participate in cricket this summer at a local club. 

Festival of Tennis at Hoddesdon LTC

On Friday 3rd May, we entered a team into a Tennis Festival hosted by Hoddesdon LTC. The afternoon consisted of a picnic and then a circuit of different tennis challenges. The stations in the circuit focused on forehand, backhand, rallying and volleying techniques. The team earned points for their school at each station and after a really enjoyable afternoon we finished in second place, only one point away from the winners. Congratulations to all the pupils involved on a fantastic achievement and many thanks to Hoddesdon LTC for organising the festival!

Chance to Shine

Over the last half-term, pupils from Year 3, 4 and 5 have enjoyed an extra hour a week of cricket coaching from Chance To Shine. The sessions have enabled children to develop their knowledge of cricket as well as improving their gross motor skills in a fun learning environment. The Chance To Shine program will be continuing with the remaining classes from Year 2, 3 and 6 after May half-term.

Y5/6 A Team Football Tournament

On a very wet and windy Tuesday afternoon, Forres Primary School entered an 'A' Team into the HDSSA Football Tournament hosted by Cranbourne Primary School. In difficult conditions the boys really struggled to get going and unfortunately did not manage to qualify from the group stages. 

Thank you to Westfield Primary School for organising and Cranbourne Primary School for hosting.

Y5/6 Netball Tournament

Forres Primary School entered one team into the HDSSA Netball Tournament on Wednesday 27th March 2019. The tournament was hosted by John Warner School and included all the schools in the Hoddesdon and Broxbourne District. This was the last netball tournament that the team will compete in this year and after a long wait the girls finally won a game, beating Sheredes 2-1 in the group stages. Unfortunately that proved to be our only win and despite the best efforts of all the pupils, the netball team did not qualify for the semi-finals.

We are all very proud of the girls for always playing with enthusiasm and a smile on their faces. To get a win this year was very well deserved for all their effort and endeavour.

Thank you to Sheredes Primary School for organising the event and to John Warner School for hosting and providing some excellent umpires.

Y3/4 Multi-Skills Festival

On Tuesday 26th March 2019, Forres Primary School entered two teams into the A10 School Sports Partnership Y3/4 Multi-Skills Festival. The festival was an opportunity for some of our younger pupils to compete against other schools in a variety of events, working on a lot of skills that they would have covered during PE lessons in school. Skills covered included; throwing, balancing, skipping, catching, agility runs and jumping. 

All the pupils really enjoyed an afternoon out of school and the feel of a competitive environment. To top off an enjoyable day, our 'A' Team came runners-up in the overall competition and won some lovely silver medals.

Well done to all involved and thank you to A10 for organising and Haileybury Turnford School for hosting.

Your Town

Our Year 5 pupils were excited to welcome Mark, from Your Town, in to school a few weeks ago to come and take over one of their PE lessons. The aim of this lesson was to highlight the importance of community and how sports, particularly running, could help form and strengthen communities. After a short classroom lesson which involved the pupils designing their own running trainers and running club badges, the pupils were then out on the field. Mark took the Year 5's through some fun warm up games before finishing with some exciting running based games.

All the pupils seemed to enjoy the lesson and especially enjoyed their brand new shiny medals. We thank Your Town for coming in to see us and for the positive role they take in the town trying to build community.

Mavericks Netball Workshop

On Wednesday 20th March 2019, Mavericks Netball came into school and provided all KS1 and KS2 classes with a netball workshop. The day consisted of working on various netball skills with each class, looking to develop footwork, various passes and shooting in a fun and engaging way. All the children enjoyed the workshop and many pupils were asking how they could continue to participate in the sport going forward.

Our coach for the day was former England international Becky Trippick, who also played Super League for Mavericks and Storm. As well as providing some excellent coaching throughout the day, Becky, also delivered an inspiring assembly, talking about her career and how she got into netball, as well as other sports. She talked about the importance of determination and perseverance in dealing with set-backs in order to reach her goals.

We thank Mavericks Netball and Becky for a fantastic day and hope this can inspire our pupils to participate in netball, both in and out of school!

Y5/6 B Team Football Tournament

On the 19th March 2019 we entered a squad of eight Year 5 and 6 boys into the HDSSA B Team Football Tournament hosted by Cranbourne Primary School. Our first game was a 0-0 draw with Wormley which was followed by another draw, this time 1-1 with St. Cross. We then faced the hosts, Cranbourne, which was a keenly fought contest that ended up in a 1-0 win to Cranbourne. The boys showed plenty of character and determination to win our final group game 1-0 against Broxbourne, this meant that we qualified out of the group stages and in to the Quarter Finals.

We met Sheredes in the next round and despite giving it everything, it wasn't enough in the end as we lost 2-0 against a very good side. Sheredes then went on to beat Cranbourne in the final on penalties.

Well done to all the players involved in a very competitive tournament and a big thanks to Westfield Primary School for organising and Cranbourne Primary School for hosting!

Y5/6 Football and Netball Fixture

On Wednesday 6th March, Forres Primary School took a football and netball team to Roselands Primary School for a fixture. It was the first opportunity for the boys and girls to be involved in a competitive fixture since the Christmas Holidays, and with tournaments coming up, was a good chance to dust off some cobwebs.

The football team started slowly conceding two goals early in the first half. Going in 2-0 down at half-time they showed plenty of determination to equal the scores in the second half. Unfortunately, they weren't able to keep the scores level as Roselands went 4-2 up. Still, Forres kept pushing for a goal and got a consolation in the final minutes. Final score; Roselands 4 - 3 Forres.

The netball team are showing improvements every time they play and despite losing the game should be proud of their progression. They managed to score a goal and move the ball around the court much better than previous games.

A big thank you to Roselands Primary School for hosting the fixture.

Y6 Cycle Training

Last week pupils from Year 6 had the opportunity for participate in a Level 1 and Level 2 Cycle Training course, designed to equip children with the required skills and confidence to ride their bikes safely on the roads. After a week consisting of a bicycle check and lots of time putting their new new skills to the test we are pleased to announce that all pupils passed their Level 1 and Level 2 award. 

Well done to all pupils that participated in the training and a massive thank you to the instructors Mel and Eric for all their hard work and patience. We look forward to offering this opportunity to Year 6 pupils again next year.

Chance To Shine

Last week the school had a visit from Dan who is a coach for Chance To Shine, a national charity that aims to give all children the opportunity to play and learn through cricket. 

Dan came into visit teachers on Monday and offer some training on how to effectively design and implement a cricket lesson. On Thursday, Dan returned to talk to the pupils in an assembly explaining what Chance To Shine will be doing in school over the following months. He also assisted teachers with a classroom based lesson using cricket resources to help teach Maths and English.

Chance To Shine works in schools to provide children with a brilliant first experience of cricket. They work with the 39 County Cricket Boards across England and Wales to send specialist coaches into schools, once a week for six weeks, to support cricket coaching.

As well as the physical benefits of regular activity, they use cricket to teach children important key life skills that will help them beyond the playground. Through the values of cricket, they teach children about respect and fair play.

Cricket is also an effective way to develop skills like communication, leadership and perseverance that will benefit them throughout their life.

Chance To Shine believe that cricket is an inclusive sport, where girls and boys can play and learn together.

They think that normalising female participation in cricket is a hugely important and valuable part of the work that they do. Of the four million children that Chance To Shine has reached since its foundation in 2005, 46% are girls and this figure is rising. They think it is important for girls and boys to learn to work and play together from an early age.

HDSSA Swimming Gala

On Wednesday 30th January, Forres entered the HDSSA Swimming Gala hosted at John Warner Sports Centre for all local primary schools. A team of 12 Y5 and Y6 pupils competed over 15 different races during the afternoon. All pupils were extremely enthusiastic and showed excellent teamwork by cheering on their teammates during every race. In the end Forres made six finals, winning one of them and finishing in 8th place overall.

Well done to all pupils involved!

The Daily Mile

Since installing The Daily Mile tracks on both school playgrounds we have seen a big increase in the activity levels of all pupils during the school day. Most classes take a 10-15 minute Daily Mile break during the day and many pupils use the tracks at break and lunch times also.

Lea Valley Karate Academy

We invited Sensei Jamie and Sensei Daniel from LVKA to perform a demonstration in our school assembly on 15th November 2018. The demonstration was very well received by the pupils who enjoyed hearing about the different skills and techniques that can be learned through Karate. Some lucky children even had the opportunity to join in. 

LVKA run a Karate club for all ages and abilities at the Methodist Church on Middlefield Road and the first lesson is FREE. Children were given a leaflet to take home with further information on, or you can visit www.lvka.co.uk

Thank you to Sensei Jamie and Sensei Daniel for coming in!

Y5&6 Football and Netball Tournament

Forres Primary School competed in the HDSSA Y5&6 Football and Netball Tournament on 14th November 2018, hosted by John Warner Secondary School. Forres entered an A and B team into the football and netball competitions.

Unfortunately on this occasion neither the football or netball teams qualified for the overall final. However, there were some excellent individual performances from all four teams and the enthusiasm and determination to keep playing was brilliant.

It was very good to be able to enter an A and B team for both competitions, which shows how many pupils are interested in representing the school and are participating in clubs after-school and at lunch time.

A big thank you to all the members of staff and the sports leaders at John Warner for organising this tournament.

Y5&6 Mixed Basketball Festival

On 13th November 2018, Forres Primary School entered two teams into the A10 Active Mixed Basketball Festival held at Haileybury Turnford School. 

The boys and girls involved had a chance to compete in basketball matches for the first time in a competitive environment and really enjoyed the opportunity. The 'B' Team managed to win one match, draw one match and lose three matches throughout the festival, scoring four baskets in the process. The 'A' Team fared a little better with one win, three draws and one defeat, scoring five baskets.

Hopefully the children will be inspired to play more basketball or maybe join the Russell Hoops Basketball Club that is run after-school on a Thursday. For any information please contact the school office.

Well done to all involved!

KS2 Fitness Testing

On 12th November 2018 we invited FitMedia into the school to complete some fitness tests with our KS2 pupils. Children were put through their paces in a number of tests including; agility runs, standing long jump and handgrip strength. These tests will give us an idea of how the pupils are progressing athletically compared to their peers in the school and around the country.

The children really enjoyed their tests and became more and more competitive. The are looking forward to the next round of tests in the New Year.

Y5&6 Inter Primary Cup

On 8th November 2018, Forres Primary School entered the A10 Active Inter Primary Cup which was hosted by Brooklands Junior School in Cheshunt. We entered a football team and a netball team into the tournament, which was the first competition of the year for both sides.

The football team performed well in their group games drawing two matches and winning one. However, with one game remaining and needing not to lose in order to progress to the semi-finals, the boys suffered a undeserved 3-0 defeat to be knocked out of the tournament.

The netball team finished their group games without a win, with two draws and two losses. This meant that they were also eliminated from the competition. A big positive to come from this tournament though was that the girls scored their first goal of the year and are hoping to add to this at the next tournament.

Well done to all involved!

Year 5/6 Football and Netball

The Year 5/6 football and netball teams hosted St Catherine's Primary School in a friendly on the 23rd October 2018. It was the first competitive fixture of the year and both fixtures were played in an excellent spirit.

Despite going 3-0 down, the football team showed plenty of character to bring the game back to 3-2 and were unlucky not to find an equaliser in the closing stages.

The netball team were defeated also, but were commended on their interceptions and turnovers with all the girls showing a vast improvement from their last game. 

Many thanks to St Catherine's, and well done to all involved.

Year 6 Football and Netball

The Year 6 football and netball teams hosted Broxbourne Primary School in a friendly on the 2nd October 2018. It was the first chance for many of the children to compete for the school and they really enjoyed it.

The football team drew 0-0 after some very positive forward play created lots of chances, including hitting the bar. This was combined with some solid defending and goalkeeping to ensure we didn't concede.

The netball team lost to a very good Broxbourne side, however, for most of the girls this was their first introduction to competitive netball and the improvement from start to finish was evident. Despite losing, the girls remained extremely positive and enthusiastic and are very excited for their next fixture.