Embsay
North Yorkshire
BD23 6RH
YOUNG VOICES – MONDAY 5th FEBRUARY 2024
Dear Parents / Carers,
It’s not long now until the ‘Young Voices’ Concert at the Manchester AO Arena and we are very excited about it! Rehearsals have been great and we have loved sharing this experience with the children. We cannot imagine how excited they are going to be when they actually arrive at the Arena / take their seats / see the stage and begin the Concert Rehearsals with the band / singers / dancers and artists though! It’s going to be such a special experience for them and one we hope they will remember for a long time.
Here are a few bits of important information we need to share with you before Monday 5th February in order to prepare your children – and yourselves!
Accompanying Adults
We have a number of adults who will be accompanying the children, and us, to the Concert this year. Miss Hodgson will be coming, as will Mrs Hayes, who teaches in Year One, and they are very much looking forward to joining us. We are also very grateful to Mrs Dixon (Year 6 parent), who has agreed to come along again and we know that she has been practising the songs very hard for quite some time now. Mrs Formoso wonders who will beat her in the ‘enthusiastic dancing’ category this year!
Food and Drink
Obviously this is very important to the children and has been the subject of lots of questions!
The children will need 2 Packed Meals for the day – one to be eaten on the coach for their lunch before we arrive at Manchester Arena and one for their tea, which we will eat at the end of the afternoon rehearsals (approx. 5pm). It would be easiest if food could be packed in 2 separate containers (one for lunch and another for tea) as space on the coach and in the arena will be limited. We cannot keep any food chilled or heat any food up so please keep this in mind when packing meals.
The children will also need enough drink (water or juice but NO fizzy drinks, please) for the whole day and evening. They can be sent in any water bottles the children have but no glass bottles can be taken into the Arena and they will, unfortunately, be confiscated.
The children can also bring snacks for the whole day and evening (this can include sweeties if you’re happy to provide your child with them!)
Please remember that school has a Nut Free Policy and no nuts should be included in your child’s snacks and meals.
If your child usually has a School Lunch, could we please ask that you ensure you have cancelled it for Monday 5th February or you will be charged for it.
Clothing
The children need to come to school wearing the clothes they will wear for the day – there is no time / space to change outfits! They need to wear …
- a ‘Young Voices’ T-Shirt (if they have one) OR a plain, white t-shirt / polo shirt / shirt. Please ensure there are no logos (including our school logo) on the plain white t-shirt they may wear.
- an Embsay School Jumper / Cardigan over the top of their T-Shirts. Please do not send your child to school wearing a PE Hoodie – we want to see the royal blue of their jumpers / cardigans as it will help us to keep them safe when moving from one place to another in the arena!
- Dark Coloured (Young Voices prefer black but dark grey / navy is fine too) Leggings/Shorts or Joggers/School Trousers or School Skirt (no Pinafores though as this will cover the white t-shirt).
- comfortable, sensible Shoes / Boots/Trainers. The children will spend quite a lot of time on their feet so comfortable shoes are advised.
- a Coat (especially useful at the end of the Concert when we will be walking from the Arena to the Coach Parking.
Young Voices Mini Torch
The children need to bring their Young Voices Mini Torches (if they have one) to use during the Concert.
We will provide the children with a Glow Wand to wave before the Concert starts – this should help you locate us in the Arena too. They must not bring any other torches / lights with them.
Bag
The children’s Food / Drinks / Torches etc need to be packed into one bag, which they will be responsible for during the whole day / evening. It would be preferable/advisable if this bag is a smaller drawstring-style bag, rather than a rucksack, as Manchester Arena has a ‘No Rucksack’ Policy. Please ensure everything your child needs can be packed into this bag. They will also bring most of their own rubbish home with them too in this bag.
The children’s bags may be checked as part of the security checks when we arrive at the Arena but we will remain with the children throughout this process and will talk to them about this before the Concert Day.
Mobile Phones
The children will not be permitted to take their Mobile Phones with them to the Young Voices Concert and, therefore, they should not bring them to school on the day of the Concert. If they are brought in on the day, they will be left in school overnight with their Class Teacher and your child can collect them the following day, as usual, at the end of school.
Medication
If your child has any medication at school, Mrs Formoso will carry it for your child (in her bag) and will ensure your child has access to it, if they need it. Your child should not bring any additional Medication with them in their own bag.
If your child needs any Travel Sickness Medication, please let us know. You will need to complete a Medical Form (available at the School Office) before the Concert Day and a member of staff will administer it. If you do not complete a Medical Form, we will not be able to administer the medication.
Timings / Collection At The End of The Day / Night!
We will be leaving Embsay Village Car Park during the morning on 5th February to travel to Manchester. We are due to arrive at Manchester AO Arena at approximately 1:00pm. The afternoon Concert Rehearsal will be held from 2:15 – 5:00pm.
The Concert will start at 7:00pm. It will end at 8:45pm and we will then travel back to Embsay via coach. As previously advised, you may only collect your child from the Village Car Park in Embsay and not at the Arena in Manchester.
We will advise you of more precise timings during the evening of Monday 5th February (ie after the Concert) as we do not yet know how long it will take us to leave the Arena. We would advise that we may not arrive back in Embsay until at least 11:15pm but we will let you know about our progress via text to avoid a very long wait in the car park. (Text may come up with a ‘Withheld’ Number – it’s us, though!)
Tuesday 6th February – Morning Only
Due to the late return to Embsay after the concert in Manchester, the children are offered the opportunity to stay at home (if supervised!) in the morning, in order to catch up with their sleep. They are invited to come into school for the start of afternoon Lessons at 1:00pm. They cannot come in at any other point during the morning as this causes a lot of disruption to classes. Please ensure you cancel your child’s School Lunch for this day if you choose to keep your child at home for the morning.
Information For Parents Attending The Concert
Concert Time
Manchester AO Arena opens to Parents / Carers at 6:00pm and the Concert starts (promptly) at 7:00pm. It will end at 8:45pm. There is no interval during the Concert.
Security and Bag Policy
Please allow enough time to pass through Security Checks at the AO Arena. The Concert will start promptly at 7:00pm even if you are in a Security Check queue.
Parents / Carers are advised that the Arena does not permit rucksacks (of any size) or large bags. You are encouraged to only bring essential items with you in a small handbag or a small drawstring bag.
You can find additional information about the Security procedures at Manchester AO Arena at their website: www.ao-arena.com/plan-your-visit/safety-security
Prohibited Items
There is a full list of Prohibited Items on the Manchester AO Arena website. However, Young Voices advises that Parents / Carers are strictly prohibited from bringing Video Equipment and SLR Cameras with large lenses.
Binoculars
Young Voices suggests bringing (small) Binoculars with you so you can spot your child in the choir. We will bring Glow Wands for the children to wave to get your attention and we will also try to put our Embsay School Banner up to mark our place for you to spot us. Please do not send additional accessories for the children to wear/wave at the Concert. They will only be able to use them in the hour as parents/carers enter the Arena and they will need to be packed away before the Concert starts.
We do not yet know where we have been allocated seating in the Arena – we will try and let you know when we find out! We know where you will all be seated so will advise the children of where to look for you when the doors open on the evening.
Please do give the children a wave! They will all look out for you and will be so excited to spot you in the crowd! It adds to the excitement of the evening for them all so please don’t be afraid / too embarrassed to give them a huge wave!
Parking
It is your responsibility to arrange car parking in Manchester but we would advise pre-booking your parking to guarantee a parking space.
Young Voices Concert DVD
A DVD of the Concert will be available to purchase via the Young Voices website after it. We will let you have information about this when we have it but the Young Voices Host will also mention it during the evening.
Please do get in touch with us if you have any other questions. We hope you enjoy the Concert!
Mrs Formoso and Mrs Pearce