As a school we understand that mornings can be very stressful and challenging for a family. If you do experience difficulties we ask that you inform the school so that we can give you as much support as possible. One way we help families in the mornings is for them to attend Breakfast Club. Do consider this as an option if you feel it will help.

Below is a list of tips which may help if you do find punctuality a problem in the mornings. I hope that you find them useful.

Rethink the meaning of “on time.” People who are always on time are really people who arrive early every day–and acknowledge that things can go wrong to set them back several minutes. When things do “go wrong” these students arrive on time!

Understand the importance of being on time. Pupils who are always on time are the people who achieve well at school. In the working world, the people who are always on time are the people who achieve success.

Get enough sleep. If you have trouble getting out of bed in the morning, then make a serious effort to get to bed earlier. Sufficient sleep is essential for maximum brain function anyway, so you really don’t want to ignore this aspect of your scholastic habits.

Give yourself a realistic amount of time to dress and prepare. You can do this with a simple exercise: Get up early one morning and time yourself (moving at a normal pace) to see how long it takes you to get ready. You may be surprised at the time it takes, especially if you find you have been trying to squeeze forty minutes worth of grooming into fifteen minutes each morning. You can try creating a time management clock.

Know exactly when you need to be at your destination and subtract ten or fifteen minutes to establish your arrival time. This will give you time to go to the bathroom or chat with friends. What time is your child expected to be seated in the classroom ? If class begins at 8:45, you should arrive at the school by 8:40.

Communicate any problems. If your bus is always late, or you have to take other children to school or childcare; come in and have a chat with the Attendance Team or your child's class teacher. There is always a supportive solution.

Listen to traffic news. If you depend on public transportation to get to school, always keep an eye on schedule interruptions.

Have a backup plan for your transportation. If you normally ride to school with someone, think ahead and plan what to do if that person is sick. Make connections with other parents who live close to you; maybe offer to take turns in taking the children to school.

Set your clocks forward by ten minutes. This is a little psychological trick that many people play on themselves. The funny thing is, it really works!

We need to work together as a community to help each other with this ongoing issue. Please support one another if you are able to, and speak with Naz (Forest site) or Ann (Bridge site) if you are experiencing difficulties.

Thank you for your continued support.