The Good Shepherd Catholic Academy, Woodthorpe, Nottingham

24/08/2026

🎒 Starting school this year? Don’t forget the most important check!

As children begin school, they’ll be mixing with lots of new friends, which also means exposure to illnesses that can be prevented.

✅ Make sure your child is fully protected before term starts:
• Check their Red Book or contact your GP
• Ensure they’ve had all routine childhood vaccinations
• Confirm they’ve received 2 doses of the MMR or MMRV vaccine
• Don’t forget the pre-school booster (dTaP/IPV)

💡 Staying up to date with vaccinations helps protect your child and everyone around them.

📲 Learn more and check the full vaccination schedule:
👉 www.nhs.uk/

Notts Healthy Family Teams

17/08/2026

Attention parents of our new year 6 children. Applications for secondary school places are now open (for Sept 2027).

📣 Secondary school applications are now open!

If your child lives in Nottinghamshire and requires a secondary school place for September 2027, you need to apply before 31 October 2026.

Applying online is quick and easy.

Parents sometimes think that selecting just one school will ensure that a place is offered but that is not the case. It is important that you make use of all four preferences and apply on time for a better chance of being offered a preferred school. Please check carefully the admissions criteria of each school you are considering because they are not all the same.

If there are no places available at your preferred school, an alternative offer may be made but this is not automatically the catchment or nearest school. Places will be offered at the next closest school with places available after all on-time applications have been processed. This may mean your child could be allocated to a school some distance from where you live.

Visit our website at the link in the comments for more information and to apply 👇

05/08/2026

Free water safety lessons for children

Throughout the summer holidays we have FREE lessons in our pools to help prevent drowning.

Our Water Confidence & Self Rescue Lessons for children aged 5-7 and 8-15 are especially for people that are nervous about being in water.

These free lessons are designed to help reduce fear, build confidence in water and introduce simple self-rescue skills, in a calm and supportive environment.

Find out more at the Gedling Leisure holiday activities webpage https://orlo.uk/YlKf5

04/08/2026

Useful to know to keep the costs down whilst entertaining the children this summer…

☀️This summer, your family can get:
• Discounted entry to Zoos, theme parks and more
• Free bus travel for children aged 5 to 15 in August.

Search Great British Summer Savings

Read more
🔗www.yournottsdirectory.org.uk/articles/great-british-summer-savings-funded-by-the-uk-government


☀️This summer, your family can get:

23/07/2026

Some Thursday joy for you - please enjoy our gorgeous Year 6 Leavers Video, Thanksgiving. Boy, we are going to miss these lots when they leave GSA tomorrow 😢 They are awesome 🫶

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrXsDnFfqSY

21/07/2026

Top tip for the summer holidays - get a National Trust Family Pass for free 🌳🪻🏛️

Ready for a perfect summer day out?

21/07/2026

Plastic bag and wellies 📚🛍️☔

Please send your child in with a strong plastic bag by Thursday to bring home school work in.

Also, please bring another bag to take home your child's wellies from the welly rack before the end of term.

We will have our welly exchange rack near the main school gate - donate wellies that are too small, take a new pair if you need them. Help yourselves!

21/07/2026

GSA is front page news on the OLOL Summer Newsletter!

Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Multi-Academy Trust 1st Floor Loxley House Riverside Business Park Tottle Road Nottingham NG2 1RT

20/07/2026

⛪🚶🏾🚶🏽‍♀️Helpers to walk to church and back ⛪🚶🏾🚶🏽‍♀️

On Friday it's leavers mass and the whole school will be walking down to church and back. We'd love some parent volunteers to walk with the children please. If you're able to help, please come to reception after drop off on Friday (9am). Thank you.

19/07/2026

Shout out to our lovely Mrs Woodward, who helps with the school choir too, plus several other GSA faces ❤️

A huge thank you to our wonderful Folk Group…for their talent, time and dedication in supporting our music ministry within our parish. We are so grateful to all the singers and musicians…young and old alike. Think about joining the group in September when they reconvene. See Rachael at Mass for more details 🙏💒🎶