MANOR SCHOOL OF BALLET newsletter feb 2013

OFFICE NEWS

We should start this newsletter with an apology for it arriving so late in to the New Year. We do hope that everyone had a good time over the festive period and also now the February break. We welcome any new pupils that have joined the school since January and we are looking forward to a busy spring/summer session.

This term, we are delighted to have Miss Casey back from her maternity leave. For anyone who doesn’t know, Miss Casey had a baby girl in July and she is called Skye. Miss Casey would like to say a big thank you to everyone who sent her good wishes and baby gifts, and, she would like to extend a special thank you to the staff that looked after her classes in her absence. Miss Morton and Miss Cunningham looked after the Galashiels branch, Miss Buchanan and Miss Bold who covered her classes at Marchmont and Mrs Dickson who took charge of the Highland classes at Corstorphine.

There are no other staff changes to report at this time; however, we are pleased that we still have Miss Natalie Marks at Belgrave branch while Mrs Murray is on leave. Many of you will be aware that Mrs Murray has been recovering from an operation that she had last year and the recovery time has been extensive. She has been popping in from time to time to visit exam pupils and she is actively keeping in touch. We wish her well as she continues to make her full recovery.

This term has been particularly busy with the preparation for our senior school show which takes place in June this year. The varied and many tasks that need to be achieved have kept the office staff on the go but we are very much looking forward to another successful show. This year we have decided to do another new show and after much debate Robin Hood seemed to be the popular choice. Senior school pupils that have chosen to participate will receive their information packs shortly after Easter. Please take time to read the information carefully as the packs do contain all the times and dates you need as well as ticketing and theatre information.

We would like to remind everyone that during the show preparation time our published office hours are subject to change at short notice. If you are having difficulty in reaching the office staff, please remember you can email us through the school website or you can leave a message on the answering machine and someone will get back to you as soon as possible.

We would also like to announce that we now have the facility to take card payments over the phone. We are only able to offer this facility during our published office hours, but it is a quick and easy way to pay class fees if you are not a regular visitor to the branches.

Finally please remember that the school does have an active Facebook page and Blog which you can access through the school website. We use both of these for all sorts of information. They are worth checking from time to time and especially in the event of extreme weather where a branch closure may occur at short notice.



BRANCH NEWS

Please can we remind all users of Corstorphine St Anne’s, Marchmont St Giles and Inverleith Church that parking in the church grounds or forecourts is not permitted at any time. These are not rules made by the Manor School of Ballet however as a matter of safety we fully support their decisions not to allow moving traffic on their property.

In the past year, parking at Marchmont and Inverleith has been at dangerous levels and we have had two very near misses with cars and children. Parking is only allowed at Marchmont with a permit issued by the church. At Inverleith the forecourt is for staff parking only that won’t be moving during operational hours. Parking is available on street at all our branches.

It is important that we consider the safety of the children entering and leaving classes and we thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Tuesday evening Highland Classes are now split in to Junior and Senior levels and Miss Casey is pleased to announce that the Junior Class is now open to pupils from Primary 1 level (age 5). Waiting lists will open after Easter for joining in August 2013.



SHOWS & PERFORMANCES

As we mentioned earlier, the senior school pupils are performing Robin Hood in June. The Galashiels branch will be performing at Galashiels Academy on Sunday 2nd June and the Edinburgh branches will be at the Churchill Theatre on Morningside Road from Monday 9th – Saturday 15th June.

We normally produce a colour A5 programme for the senior show and we would like to offer advertising space to anyone who may be interested. Any support is graciously received and anyone wishing to place an advert in the programme can email the office for further details. Please make enquiries before the end of April.

The next Junior School show will take place around Easter 2014 and we will be issuing information regarding their production before the Christmas break.

Finally, in December some of our scholars were performing in the Children’s Classic Concerts with the R.S.N.O . Once again they performed to sell out audiences in Scotland’s most prestigious concert venues. The same group of dancers are also performing at a musical evening in celebration of St Anne’s centenary. Well done to all of them.



EXAMINATIONS & PRESENTATIONS

There are a number of R.A.D presentations and examinations coming up in the next few weeks. Most of the Grade 4 and 5 classes are due in this session and we also have 8 Intermediate pupils sitting professional level examinations. They have all worked extremely hard and we wish them all good luck.

The junior school will be offered U.K.A ballet award tests for all Nursery – Primary 2 level classes which will take place in May followed by class parent’s days in the last few weeks of term. Entry forms will be issued after Easter. Please take note of the closing dates as these cannot be extended under any circumstances. We issue closing dates to meet our own deadlines with the examination boards.



DATES FOR THE DIARIES

Block 3 starts week beginning Monday 11th March 2013 - Please ensure class fees are paid as soon as possible in order for us to close the year accounts. Galashiels Senior Shows – Sunday 2nd June 2013

Edinburgh Senior Shows – Monday 9th – Saturday 15th June 2013

Easter Holidays – Saturday 23rd March 2013 – Sunday 7th April 2013.

Spring/Summer terms end – Saturday 15th June 2013

Autumn terms commences week beginning Monday 19th August 2013.

Please remember we do not observe any of the Monday holidays during April and May and classes are on as normal.