UPPER & LOWER SCHOOL INVOICES NEWSLETTER March 2016 PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU READ YOUR INVOICE (INCLUDING THE INVOICE NOTES) CAREFULLY TO CHECK YOUR CHILD’S CLASS FOR NEXT TERM AS THE TIME AND/OR DAY MIGHT HAVE CHANGED. THANK YOU! Dear Parent / Guardian or Student, We hope you are having a good spring term and managing to avoid all of the illnesses that seem to be going around. Thank you for taking the time to read the relevant sections below regarding your / your child's dance classes for the remainder of this term and for next term . . .

INVOICE FOR DANCE CLASSES IN SUMMER TERM 2016 You will find attached your invoice(s) for dance classes at SLDS next term (summer term 2016); please ensure payment is made on or before the last day of this term which is Friday 25th March. If payment is not made on time, in some classes, your child may lose the space and / or an administration fee will be added to your account. Payment can be made via BACS or cheque / cash. If you are paying by cash or cheque, you will need to print and attach the payment slip which is at the bottom of your invoice. You will notice that fees for next term have been adjusted from the current term as next term is 12 weeks whereas this term is only 11 weeks. Your invoice is your first notification of the appropriate class(es) for you / your child next term so please read it carefully and also ensure you check the invoice notes section for any further information. And if you are / your child is in a new class for the next term then we recommend you find out more about the class by visiting our website: www.southlondondancestudios.co.uk/classes. Please note; it is now too late to give notice of leaving the school at the end of this term or to request to change classes next term as notice was required on or before Friday 12th February (the last day of the first half of term) as per SLDS Terms and Conditions clauses 11-14, ''Cancellation and Amendment''. If you would like a copy of the school brochure with our Terms and Conditions included as well as further useful information, please contact us. Please keep the top section of the invoice in a safe place so that when next term starts, you know which classes you are / your child is signed up for. At the start of each term we are getting unmanageable numbers of telephone calls and emails asking which class(es) a student has signed up for and it is simply not possible for us to get back to everyone. As you are aware, invoices are emailed to the address we have been provided with before the end of term. If you have received this newsletter and invoice by post then you will notice that a charge of £5.00 has been added to your invoice. To avoid this charge in future, please provide us with a functioning email address from which your invoice will not bounce back. Thank you. Please be patient in waiting for us to get back to your telephone call or email if you have a query about your invoice. However, if you do not hear back from us after 5 days or before the end of term (whichever is sooner), please contact us again

TERM DATES 1

The last day of this term is Friday 25th March. Summer Term 2016 (12 weeks) th

Mon 11th April – Sat 28 May NOTE - classes are on as usual on Mon 2nd May (bank holiday) th

Half term - Sun 29th May to Sun 5 June th

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Mon 6 June - Sat 9 July th

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Parents watching week – Mon 20 June to Sat 25 June th

Deadline to enter for the 2017 show – Sun 26 June th

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Summer term feedback day - Sun 26 June (except Sunday 19 June with Miss Pippa) th

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Acting class dates - Sunday 17 April, 15 May, 29 May, 12 June, 26 June and 10 July Autumn term 2016 (12 weeks) Mon 12th Sept - Sat 22nd Oct Half term - Sun 23rd Oct - Sun 30th Oct Mon 31st Oct - Sun 11th Dec Autumn term feedback day - Sun 11th Dec Acting class dates - TBA Examinations - dates are still TBC - Sun 27th Nov, Wed 30th Nov, Thurs 1st Dec, Fri 2nd Dec & Sun 4th Dec Show 2017 meeting - Sun 11th Dec Unfortunately we are unable to respond to any messages that are simply asking our term dates as they are so widely available.

BREAKS BETWEEN CLASSES FOR SATURDAY CHILDREN Children who have a break during any of the times below will be supervised between classes by an older student or a teaching assistant. 2.00-2.15pm - this break will take place in studio 2 so please bring into the studio at the start of the ballet class a small bag containing: •

Tap shoes and any other items needed for tap class (and for modern class if going straight to modern after tap)

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Small snack if required (containing no crumbs, or nuts due to allergies)

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Drink with lid (not fizzy and not a carton as they tend to spill), preferably water

2.45-4.30pm – these breaks will take place in the waiting room so please leave everything that is needed during and after the break in the changing room, and take into the dance studio at the start of the session only what is needed for the class(es) before the break 5.15-5.30pm - this break will take place in the waiting room so please leave everything that is needed during and after the break in the changing room, and take into the dance studio at the start of the session only what is needed for the class(es) before the break If your child's break time is not listed, an adult will need to collect them between classes or they will need a consent slip to leave the studio unaccompanied. Note - children who attend classes on a Saturday for 1 1/2 hours plus with NO break should bring into the studio a small bag with bottle of water and all dance clothes, shoes and props. They do NOT need to bring any snack with them, unless they have a medical condition that requires one.

PARENTS / GUARDIANS OPPORTUNITY TO OBSERVE CLASSES SUMMER TERM 2016 2

The teachers very much look forward to seeing all the parents / guardians of children in Nursery 1 dance and levels above when they are invited to watch classes from Monday 20th June – Saturday 25th June inc. We hope many parents / guardians can attend in order to see the progress their child has made over the past few terms. Regarding watching classes, please note: •

We invite parents / guardians to view their child's class(es) once a year so that they can see how their child is progressing.

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Please bear in mind that the open classes are not performances; we invite you to watch a normal class to observe development and progress.

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Parents, guardians, grandparents, siblings (age 4 +), friends & nanny’s etc are welcome to attend but please be mindful that the children need some space in which to dance!

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Please consider that some children in the class may be shy or nervous of dancing in front of an audience.

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Due to above two points please try to bring a maximum of 3-4 audience members per child to watch.

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No children under the age of 4 will be allowed into the studio to watch and no exceptions will be made to this policy which is in the best interests of the children in the classes (this includes tiny babies).

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Please only bring other children (age 4 +) with you to watch the class if they are capable of sitting still for the duration, without an electronic game, book, food etc, i.e. they would have to actually watch the class without distracting the children dancing!

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You can video the class and show it to siblings, friends and other family members who are not able / eligible to attend, and photograph's can also be taken. However, no material may be put on any website or other social media.

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We do not invite an audience to any of our Melody Movement classes.

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Unfortunately if you are not able to watch during the dates offered, we are unable to offer an alternative date. We realise this might be disappointing for some parents / guardians but it is necessary for us to restrict viewings to one week of term.

SUNDAY FORTNIGHTLY ACTING CLASSES – summer term 2016 The fortnightly acting classes at South London Dance Studios focus on the requirements for children wanting to audition for and work in TV, film and theatre. Key skills are taught in a fun and confidence building environment including: listening and reacting to others (the main skill in acting!), improvisation, becoming a character, text work (monologues, duologues and group pieces), voice production and accent training. Children who attend our acting classes can sometimes be invited by the Principal to audition for West End shows as well as for representation by one of the top London children's performing arts agencies. As most auditions require acting skills, we only consider putting forward to audition our students who attend our fortnightly acting classes. Children who are accepted into the agency will have the opportunity to audition for professional acting (including theatre, TV and film), singing, dancing and musical theatre work (including West End work). So, if your child is keen to be considered for the agency audition, he / she will need to be a part of our acting classes. th

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The acting class dates for next term are: Sunday 17 April, Sunday 15 May, Sunday 29 May, Sunday 12 June, Sunday 26 June th

and Sunday 10 July. The class times and fees are: Junior acting classes (5 to 8 year olds) - 4.00 - 5.00pm - £56.00 for 6 classes Senior acting classes (9 to 12 year olds) - 5.00 - 6.30pm - £84.00 for 6 classes If you wish to enrol your child in acting classes for the next term then please contact [email protected]. Please note; unfortunately we are unable to apply any discount to the acting classes, nor will they contribute towards the hour based discount due to the fact these classes are run on a fortnightly basis

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR WHEN YOU ARE AT THE STUDIOS 3

LOST PROPERTY We have now introduced a new storage system for the lost property as it is getting out of control - SLDS uniform items and shoes will continue to be placed in the blue plastic bucket on the steps in the waiting room. Please note; national skirts and SLDS sweaters will be hung up on the hooks in the waiting room. All other lost property items will be placed in the pink bucket between the two sofas in the waiting room. At the end of EVERY HALF TERM we will take all items from the pink bucket to the charity shop, and at the end of EVERY TERM we will donate all uniform items and shoes to the second hand uniform sale in aid of Charlotte Leatherbarrow Foundation. So, please make sure you check for lost items before each break otherwise they will no longer be there as we are unable to continue to store so many lost items! CHANGING AND WAITING ROOMS Unfortunately we are still finding the communal areas are regularly being left in a terrible state with rubbish and food all over the floors, and dirty cutlery / crockery left lying round. This seemed to be a particular a problem on Thursday evenings. Therefore, we ask that all parents / guardians continue to speak to their children about respecting the building. Thank you for your cooperation. ENTERING AND EXITING THE BUILDING It is a condition of our planning approval with Lambeth Council that everyone must exit through the back door of the Studio Premises onto Milkwood Road. You must ensure that you (and your child) do so. Over the past few weeks we have noticed an increasing number of parents / guardians and children exiting out of the front door. This creates congestion and can be dangerous for young children who are going in and out of classes in studio 1. The only situation that we will allow students to exit out of the front door is late in the evening when it is dark and students leave the premises by themselves and in the interests of personal safety, they feel exiting through the front is preferable.

INFORMATION FOR PARENTS OF SATURDAY LOWER SCHOOL STUDENTS Just to remind you of the points we have been trying to put in place this term to ease congestion and make drop off and collection easier for everyone concerned, particularly our younger students. Please read this before next term commences, thank you:

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Please ensure you arrive early for your child's class so that you do not have to rush and push through lots of parents to get your child to the door. This is very unsettling for your child, as is entering a class that has already started.

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When collecting, in order to make the collection system as fair as possible please could parents who arrive just as the class is finishing stand back and let those parents who have been waiting for longer collect their child first. For this process to be fair, it relies on all parents to be considerate of and fair towards each other.

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We can’t stress enough how important it is that you do not wait in front of the main entrance door. Waiting here could cause accidents and also prevents people from entering the studios. If you do notice parents clustering in front of the main entrance door we do ask that you kindly assist us by asking them to move out of the way and to move further down the corridor beyond the stairs.

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Do not change your child or put on their shoes anywhere other than the designated changing rooms - EVEN IF YOU ARE LATE. It is extremely dangerous for your own child and others. This includes the downstairs disabled toilet as teachers constantly need access to the props cupboard which is inside.

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Please do not sit on the stairs at any time - there is a comfortable waiting room upstairs for your use.

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If someone else is dropping off / collecting your child, please can you make sure they’re also aware of what they need to do in terms of above and the dropping off / collecting systems for your child's class which will be explained to you by their teacher over the first two weeks of term.

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SCHOOL UNIFORM SALE – Saturday 19th April 11.00am-2.00pm The next sale run kindly by SLDS parents will be on Saturday 19th April from 11.00am-2.00pm in the upstairs waiting room. Please use the attached 'School Uniform Sale form' form in the next email for selling items which can be dropped off in the boys changing room at any time as long as they are in a bag labelled for the school uniform sale. 100% of the profit from any donated items will be given to the Charlotte Leatherbarrow Foundation, or alternatively you can choose to split the profit 50/50 between yourself and the charity. Please email [email protected] if you have any queries.

SLDS SHOW - APRIL 2017 Our next big school show is confirmed to take place during the first week of the Easter holidays in 2017 (Wednesday 5th – Saturday 8th April) at the professional standard theatre at Langley Park Boys School. We can now release that the new ballet will be based on ‘Coraline’ the book by Neil Gaiman with Miss Zoe directing and Mr Rush (our examinations pianist) composing the music. Miss Tracy and Miss Vikki will be choreographing, assisted by Miss Anuschka. And Act II will be various tap, modern, song & dance, National, contemporary and commercial/street numbers choreographed by the SLDS team. All of our students in Preparatory dance & tap (in January 2017) and levels above will be invited to take part. We do hope many of your children will want to participate as it's a brilliant and fun experience which tends to be talked about by the children for years to come. Taking part in one of our shows is a very big commitment both time wise and financially but without doubt, it is worth it. The dates are listed below to ensure you do not book a holiday over any of them (!) and a letter will be sent out next term with more details including cost to take part and for information about costumes. We will require a firm commitment and payment for your child(ren) to take part on or before Sunday 26th June. We realise this seems early given that the performances are in April, but teachers will be casting, planning dances and costumes over the summer break. Sun 11th Dec - show meeting for parents and to get children into groups and measured Sun 8th Jan - 1st rehearsal Sun 15th Jan - 2nd rehearsal Sun 22nd Jan - 3rd rehearsal Sun 29th Jan - 4th rehearsal Sun 5th Feb - 5th rehearsal Sun 12th Feb - 6th rehearsal Sun 26th Feb - 7th rehearsal Sun 5th March - ballet rehearsal (children not in the ballet will not be required on this date) Sun 12th March - 8th rehearsal Sun 19th March - 9th rehearsal Sun 26th March - costume check and first full run through Sun 2nd April - 10th rehearsal Tues 4th April - second full run through at SLDS Wed 5th - Sat 8th April - at the theatre (with performances on Fri 7th & Sat 8th April)

NEW BEGINNERS ADULT TAP CLASS We are considering starting a new beginners adult tap class in the near future. The main aspects of our adult classes are doing a bit of exercise whilst having fun and meeting new people. In our beginners tap classes, basic tap technique and steps are taught and put

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together in sequences to various different types of music. Rhythm and coordination improve as well as physical stamina and control. If you are interested, please contact [email protected] before the end of this term.

DANCE PARTIES Some of our teachers are available for fun children's dance parties on Sunday's during term time and on Saturday's & Sunday's during holiday periods. If you are interested and require more information, please email [email protected]

FINALLY! We would like to wish all of our students who are taking examinations this term the very best of luck, and all of our students and their families a wonderful Easter break. Best Wishes, Jennifer Watson and Carla Gentry School Administrators South London Dance Studios 020 7978 8624 www.southlondondancestudios.co.uk [email protected] (for lower school and adult student administration) [email protected] (for upper school and examinations administration)

Please note; on a Saturday during term time Jen will be in the office from 8.30am-2.30pm but after this time, the office will NOT be manned.

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