Headmaster’s Update
Happy New Year!
It’s been a treat to welcome back all of the children and staff at the start of 2026 and we’ve enjoyed a very purposeful and productive first few days. Before the children returned, the staff took part in a host of training sessions and meetings, this term focusing on cybersecurity and developing our competencies in the use of AI for teaching and learning.
We’ve welcomed two new peripatetic music teachers this term, with Mr Ian Haysted, a clarinetist, teaching woodwind and Miss Amy Porter, a soloist and ensemble singer, teaching voice lessons at TPS.
With the start of term coinciding with the end of the Christmas holidays, our whole school assembly looked at the festival of Epiphany which took place on 6th January, marking the moment that the Magi reached Bethlehem and how this coincides with the end of the 12 Days of Christmas. The children were fascinated to learn about the many traditions that take place across the world, including winter swimming, marking doors with Christus mansionem benedicat (Christ bless this house) for good luck and the French tradition of enjoying a ‘galette des rois’, or ‘cake of the king’, sometimes with a figurine or charm inside. What fun! Of course, we also reflected on New Year’s resolutions and our school value for this term which is for everyone to be ‘Courteous’, focusing on exceptional manners at all times.
Last night, we held our second parent forum of the year, following a really productive review with new families on starting at TPS in the autumn. The focus this time was ‘Communication’, looking at the platforms and mechanisms through which the School shares information and what might be improved. Thank you very much to all the parents who joined our panel to share their views and give constructive feedback. As part of the presentation, we explored the availability of the new My School Portal (MSP) app, so please see the information from Miss Harris below, as this will be a very helpful new tool for parents to get easy access to TPS news and key information.
Oliver Barrett, Headmaster
Key Dates
Jan
| Day: | Date: | Event: |
|---|---|---|
| Mon | 12 | Year 3&4 Bounce Workshops |
| Tue | 13 | School Council Meeting |
| Tue | 13 | Year 8 Photography session (during art lessons) |
| Tue | 13 | Year 7&8 Study Skills Workshop |
| Wed | 14 | Year 3&4 Mr Dilly History Workshop |
| Fri | 16 | Year 4 Trip to Polka Theatre |
All up to date events information can be found on MSP
Sports Fixtures
Jan
| Day: | Date: | Sport Event: | Location: |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed | 14 | Year 5 Boys Closed Training with Hampton Prep | Hampton Prep School – Carlisle Park |
All up to date events information can be found on MSP
Donate your books!!!
Half Term Tech Camp at TPS
My School Portal Mobile App
As Mr Barrett mentioned previously, there is a brand new My School Portal (MSP) mobile app which has been recently launched which we believe will be a positive step forward in terms of school communications. The application is designed to modernise school communications and streamline admin tasks, while giving parents and guardians a more seamless mobile first experience. This communication aims to give you a set of steps to download the application, login to your account and access important school information.
The mobile app looks like this:
You can access your child’s account via the application by either searching for ‘My School Portal’ within the app store or using one of the following QR codes below:
Google Play: Apple:
Once downloaded you will be need to go through the following steps to log into your TPS school account:
- Click Get Started, then Continue
- Start typing the school name into the search bar to find it from the list. (Twickenham Prep)
- Tap the name of the school you’d like to connect with.
- Enter your MSP credentials into the login page.
Once complete, the application will load and you will be able to start exploring.
Note: To use the app, you must have a PIN, passcode, or biometric authentication set up on your device. The application may ask you to set this up during initial login.
Once logged in, you will be given access to the home screen and four buttons at the bottom of the screen:
- In the Home tab, you’ll find the school dashboard and your child’s academic information, where you can see reports and the day planner.
- The Inbox is where you’ll find messages from the school. Use filters to new unread messages, see ‘starred’ favourites or messages sent via email or SMS. Push notications only work if your school uses MSP Messaging system. If not, messages will still appear in your inbox, but you won’t receive alerts.
- The Bookings tab is where you can manage appointments, activites and payements. This may include clubs, trips, parents evenings and more.
- The More tab is your gateway to additional school resources. This may include access to news, media galleries, school and parent information, and other helpful links.
Notifications for the inbox have to be manually activated. To do this, return to the home screen then press the settings cog button at the top right of the screen. Tick the notifications checkbox and confirm with your phone to enable them. The settings area allows users to add additional schools to the app (if you have another child at a different school), as well as view the privacy policy.
Additionally please note some security features:
- Session Timeouts: The app will lock after one hour of inactivity, requiring reauthentication with a PIN, passcode or biometrics.
- Reauthentication: You will be prompted to reauthenticate with your username and password if you haven’t used the app for 30 days.
- Updates: You will be prompted to update your app following any updates to ensure you have the latest features and improvements.
My School Portal
My School Portal is a great school-to-parent communication system.
Here you will find the latest events, which can be synced with your electronic calendar, weekly menus and copies of all letters sent home.
Below are important notices from two key departments which are updated weekly:
Pre-Prep — messages from Mrs Barnes including club collection
Click Here
Safeguarding & Wellbeing messages from our Designated Safeguarding Team
Click Here
School Meals week commencing: 12th January Menu Week 2 TBC
