This morning has been filled with excitement as children spent time with their new teacher and in their new classroom ahead of September. It was such a joy walking around the school and seeing so many smiling faces. The children embraced the morning with enthusiasm and confidence, looking ahead to the next stage of their school journey.

We were also delighted to welcome our new Year R children into school for their transition session. They were absolutely amazing! It was wonderful to see how confidently they settled in, explored their new environment and interacted so beautifully with one another. We are incredibly excited to welcome them officially to the Bentley family in September.

Whilst our newest children were busy getting to know Bentley, the school felt noticeably quieter as our Year 6 pupils spent the day visiting their secondary schools. This is such an important milestone, and I hope they all had a fantastic day. I can't wait to hear all about their experiences when they return on Monday!

Earlier this week, a group of our Year 3 and Year 4 children visited Treloar's to take part in a fantastic arts event. The children performed a dance to Friend Like Me and were simply outstanding. Their enthusiasm, confidence and teamwork shone throughout the performance, and we were all treated to performance during our celebration assembly this morning. They should all be incredibly proud of themselves—well done to everyone involved!

Our wonderful Attenborough Garden has also welcomed more special visitors this week. Children from Year 2 and Year 6 took part in some filming, showcasing our beautiful outdoor environment and the fantastic opportunities it provides for learning. It is always a real pleasure to welcome visitors into our school and to share not only our amazing grounds but, more importantly, our wonderful children, who are always such excellent ambassadors for Bentley.                              

Finally, a reminder that Sports Day takes place next week. We are looking forward to a fantastic morning of fun, teamwork and friendly competition. Don't forget that parents, grandparents and family members can also help their child's house by taking part in our family races—every point counts! We hope to see lots of you there cheering everyone on and joining in the fun.

Have a wonderful weekend, and we look forward to seeing everyone on Monday for another exciting week at Bentley.

Mrs Hallett
Headteacher

HOUSEPOINTS                                                                                                      

Last week’s housepoints totals:

211

193

130

225

ATTENDANCE

Governors have set the attendance target for the school at 97%. The class with the best attendance last week were Year 4. Well done Year 4!

Attendance figures for each class for last week are below:

 

SAFEGUARDING

The Hottest Day at School is a research-informed resource developed by Hampshire County Council in partnership with the University of Southampton to help children understand how to stay safe and comfortable during periods of hot weather. The project is based on extensive research into the impact of rising classroom temperatures on children's health, wellbeing and learning. They have created a story to help children understand simple ways to keep cool and stay safe during hot weather. Through the story, children learn practical strategies such as drinking plenty of water, finding shade and removing jumpers when appropriate, helping them to develop good habits that they can use during periods of extreme heat. Below is a link to a You Tube version of the story.

The Hottest Day at School - YouTube

 

THANK YOU…

… to the Taylor family for the donation of books. We are very grateful for your generous donation.

 

ARITHMAGICIANS

Don’t forget to keep playing and earning points, which can be exchanged for rewards such as house points, extra playtime and even an ice lolly with Mrs Blake.

 

FRENCH DAY – WEDNESDAY 8TH JULY 2026

This year’s French Day has been inspired by Alton Arts Week and gives us the opportunity to celebrate all the wonderful ‘arts’ that the French-speaking world has to offer from artists like Monet to stories like Beauty and the Beast, a French fairy tale. 

As always, the children are invited to dress up in red, white and blue to represent the colours of the French flag. In addition, there will be the popular Year 6 Croissant Kiosk at breaktime as well as class games of Pétanque.  Madame Jones will deliver a language-focused French lesson to every class and the children will participate in a range of related activities throughout the day with their class teacher.  

 

BOOK A TOUR FOR YEAR R 2027

 

SCHOOL PLACES STILL AVAILABLE!

 

NORTH 2 SOUTH SUMMER HOLIDAY CAMP

 

ALTON ARTS FESTIVAL

The Alton Arts Festival returns 3–12 July, bringing music, comedy, theatre and visual arts to Holybourne, Alton and Chawton. It’s a 10-day, multi-arts festival with something for the whole family to enjoy.

Our children's artwork is on show at the Alton Arts Festival Schools Programme 2026 exhibition! Creative work from 18 Hampshire schools is being showcased at Freedom Through Expression on Alton High Street, 3–12 July (Tuesday–Saturday, 10am–4pm). Entry is free. Do go along and see what our pupils have made.

 

🎟️ Tickets are now on sale – explore the full programme here:
https://wegottickets.com/altonartsfestival

🌟 Family highlights

Chris Riddell (Live Event)
11th July 5pm
Enjoy a special event with award-winning illustrator and former Children’s Laureate Chris Riddell, a fantastic opportunity for young readers and budding artists.
👉 Book here: https://wegottickets.com/event/696829

Olaf Falafel’s Stupidest Super Stupid Show
5th July 2pm
Award-winning, sell-out comedy for children packed with facts, nonsense and laughs.
👉 Book here: https://wegottickets.com/event/696129

🎭 Pumpkin Pantos: Alice in Wonderland (FREE event)
4th July 2-3pm Alton Public Gardens
A colourful outdoor pantomime with music, costumes and comedy for all ages.

🎉 Party in the Park (FREE – Festival Finale)
12th July 12noon - 6pm Alton Public Gardens
The festival closes with a relaxed outdoor celebration – live music, food and community spirit. Bring a blanket and the family!

ECO UPDATE

News from The Attenborough Garden

Over the past week, our Nature Guardians have been proudly sharing our garden with some very special visitors. 

The One Show Visit

Last Friday The BBC One Show came to visit in the Attenborough Garden where they filmed some of our Nature Guardians talking about their love of nature.  A huge well done and thank you to Lyra, Arthur, Alec, Eleanor, Finn and Christoper who all did Bentley proud as they were each interviewed by the crew.

Visit from Bushy Leaze Nursery

On Monday, a small team of Nature Guardians led a tour of The Attenborough Garden to some of the staff from Bushy Leaze Nursery who were looking for inspiration for their own garden area.  Well done and thank you to Alex, Freddie, Amelie, Orla, Heidi and Oscar for leading the tour.

Nature Discovery Week

Bentley pupils in Year 2 and Year 6 participated in Nature Discovery Week on Thursday as part of a visit from the Natural History Museum, National Education Nature Park and the charity 30x30 UK.  Once again some of our Nature Guardians led a tour of the school grounds, proudly highlighting areas that we have improved for nature, including our latest project, The Attenborough Garden.  Year 6 and Year 2 then participated in nature surveys which will help scientists to build up a picture of the nature in our school grounds. Well done and thank you to Alex, Freddie, Amelie, Orla, Heidi, Oscar, Edie, Orla and Jessica for leading the tour.

Hidden Treasure Hunt – a national recycling challenge

This is your final chance to support Bentley by recycling your unwanted tech!  The closing date is the 6^th July. However, please note that you can recycle your old electricals all year round.  The Hidden Treasure Hunt asks you to hunt out unwanted or broken tech and electrical items at home and recycle them at Curry’s or at Farnham and Alton Recycling Centres – click here for more details.  Please note, if you are NOT dropping off your items at Currys, please take a photo when you recycle them to upload as evidence – you will be asked to upload this photo when you register – click here to register and scroll down to ‘How to register your recycling’.

Every time a family registers their recycling, our school earns a Planet Care Point and moves up the national leaderboard. Schools can win thousands of pounds in Currys’ vouchers for Microsoft tech, and families who take part are entered into prize draws to win Currys’ vouchers for Microsoft tech too. As an extra incentive Eco Council will be awarding a ‘Dolphin Award’ to those children who participate.  Pupils should bring in a photo of them recycling their tech at Curry’s or a recycling centre.  Please note only one dolphin will be awarded per child.   

Please do get involved and share with your friends and family to help us to win some Microsoft tech for our school. The campaign runs until 6^th July 2026.
Find out more and take part at: hiddentreasurehunt.org