Children should attend school unless prevented from doing so by sickness, special home circumstances or similar reasons. Should your child be ill please do not send him/her to school. Should your child be on temporary medication, please do not send it to school for staff to administer. It may get forgotten or administered incorrectly and staff do not want that extra responsibility. Should your child become ill during school hours you will be contacted to take your child out of the school.

The school door is always open to parents and while we like to know in advance that you are coming, this should not deter you from at least ringing up, or coming for a visit. While the staff will endeavor to make themselves available, you will appreciate that there are difficulties during school hours. We would like to see you – please get in touch with us if you have any concerns. You can make an appointment to see the Principal or Staff member by ringing the school office.

Each Friday at 2.00 pm an end-of-week assembly is held. Certificates are awarded to children for special efforts and attainments throughout the week. Each fortnight, a class is responsible for organising the assembly. These start earlier at 1.45 pm. A warm welcome is extended to parents who wish to attend.

Periodically, classes in the school are involved in educational visits. It is our policy to involve parents as much as possible in these class trips, both in a supervisory role and also, that they may share with us some of the pleasures associated with giving children the opportunity to learn outside the classroom. We make every endeavour to ensure that places visited are within the scope of the pupils understanding and relevant to the subject being studied. We also like to make certain that supervision is adequate at all times. Notice of such trips is usually given well in advance and costs are kept to a minimum.

Paparore School does not ask for ‘voluntary donations’ towards school activities. The Board of Trustees funds all activities.

A lost property box is held at the school.  We try to return missing articles and clothing as they are found, which is difficult and very time consuming if property is unnamed.  Please enquire immediately if anything is lost.  If something is brought home by mistake please return it to the school immediately.  Do not allow your children to bring toys or jewellery to school.  The school will take no responsibility for any of these that are broken or lost.

There are many occasions when parents are able to help with school activities, and teachers are very grateful for the support they receive at these times.  If you would like to help within the classroom, contact the Principal or Class Teacher. Parents who do not wish to work in the classroom can often help with other projects, such as making equipment out of class or at home.  If you feel you are able to help in any way we would like to hear from you.

We remind parents of our “open door” policy which encourages parents to visit the school at any time to view their children in the classroom. At the start of the year, we have an informal gathering for parents to meet teachers and other parents. We urge you to take these opportunities to see your child’s teacher to see how your child has ‘settled in’ at school. Once every 2 years a Marae ‘Live-In’ is held.

Each child is issued with his/her stationery, free of charge, at the beginning of each year.

If needing to take your child from school during the day, please ensure that the child’s teacher or one of the staff members is informed, especially if it is during a break.  This is particularly important as, if nobody has seen the child depart, it may take some time to establish his/her whereabouts.  If a member or a friend of the family is to collect a pupil, it is vital that they tell a staff member before they leave. The Principal should be advised of any court orders involving legal guardianship or access limitations.