Starting @Hazlehead
What Will My Child Need To Start At Hazlehead School?
Pupils join our school at the beginning of Primary 1, but often due to family moves or a change in circumstances some children will be welcomed in to Hazlehead throughout the year and through the stages of the school.
Pupils who join mid way through a term will always start school on a Monday.
We expect children to arrive wearing school uniform, so please buy your uniform in advance and collect it from the school. Our Uniform can be bought from our Parent Council’s online shop – Uniforms
If you are in receipt of certain benefits you may be entitled to a grant towards school uniform – you can see and apply here – Apply for a school clothing grant
There is also some other items and equipment that pupils at Hazlehead School will require.
Shoes –
We like to take pride in our beautiful building and in order to keep it clean and well maintained we ask that children change from outdoor shoes to indoor shoes when they come into school in the morning, and after break and lunchtime in the playground. These do not need to be expensive and we do prefer them to be black.
As shoes are changed often during the day as would request that you ensure your child in able to fasten shoes themselves. If they are not confident with laces, please buy velcro or buckle fastening shoes.
We are a very sporty school and we make very good use of our ground and astroturf for our PE lessons. Children will require trainers for their outdoor PE
Waterproofs
At Hazlehead we spent a lot of time in our outdoor space, and living in Aberdeen, we need to do this in all weathers..!! Children should have a waterproof coat that is warm enough for winter conditions. We would ask that jackets are colourful or have reflective surfaces as in winter it can be dark when school finishes. Younger children who spend time in the messy garden will benefit from having waterproof trousers and wellies in school.
Food and Drink
Children will also need a snack for their morning break. We encourage snacks to always be healthy however on Wednesday and Friday we encourage snacks to be fruit or vegetables. There is a monthly class snack award for the class who has the healthiest snack. We request that grapes are halved and we have a No Nut policy.
We encourage our children to drink plenty of water throughout the day so each child should attend every day with a bottle of clean fresh water
School Dinners
School dinners at Hazlehead are of excellent quality and are very popular. Food is made in the school kitchen by our Chef and her team. Our lunch menu works on a 3 week rotation and is always available on our website – Lunch Menu
Every day has a vegetarian option. If your child has any food requirements due to religious practices or allergies, please let us know and our catering team will word around that.
Throughout Scotland school dinners are free for children in Primary 1 – Primary 5. Ifyou are in receipt of certain benefits you may be entitled to free school meals – you can find out here and apply – Apply for free school meals
School dinner costs £2.20 per day. When your child starts at Hazlehead we will send home inforation about Parent Pay – this is the system that we use to allow parents to order food in advance, and in P6 and P7 to pay for school meals.
Children do not have to have school lunches – they are welcome to bring a packed lunch from home and eat that with their friends. Again we request that grapes are halved and we operate a No Nut policy.
Information From Home
When your child starts at Hazlehead you will be given a rather daunting form to complete – please do not worry about this, but please do complete and return it to us quickly. This is the form where you can tell us who your emergency contact should be if your child needs collected from school and you are unavailable. It also contains some pages regarding certain permissions that we need to request – permissions for trips out of school, permissions to take photographs of your child and use these in various different ways. This form also allows you to tell us if you would prefer it if your child didn’t take part in the services that we attend (either virtually or in person) at Craigiebuckler Church.
Car Parking
The car park at school is for staff and visitors only and shouldn’t be used for dropping off children or picking them up (unless you have a blue badge).
There is parking at Hazlehead Park and safe walking routes – Where To Park
We also have a great deal of storage for bikes and scooters and encourage families to leave the car at home for school drop offs and pick ups.
Wrap Around Care
Community Link Childcare operate 2 After School Clubs from Hazlehead School and information on how to contact them for a place is available here – After School Club . We do not offer any childcare options in school before school starts at 08:40.
Communication From School
We often have to communicate information to our families either regarding your child in particular or a school announcement. We use a system called Groupcall for this which emails parents. However in addition to email we would recommend that all parents sign up for the Groupcall Xpressions app. Expressions is a “push notifications system” rather like a text message where you receive the message immediately rather than having to wait to check your email. In situations where we need to get information to all parents quickly (for example the very rare occasion of an emergency school closure) this is very important. If we have information regarding just your child (for example if they have had an accident) we would generally phone you first. Please see more about the Xpressions app here – Xpressions App
We are here to help..!
We understand that a house move (in Aberdeen that often involves an International move) is a major event for a family, and even if you have just changed schools within Aberdeen, this is a major event for your child. Every school in Aberdeen and around the world has they own way of doing things!
We are always here to help – either on the phone – 01224 498120 – or by email – hazleheadprimary@aberdeencity.gov.uk – and we are happy to answer any questions that you might have either before or after your child starts.
Our school handbook is a legal document that we have to produce and has all the formal information you will need on policies and timings.