A warm welcome to Olive! Our new school puppy
10 Sep
Welcome, Olive!
Update (30th September, 2024): Today, we are delighted to welcome our newest member of the culture team, Olive. Today is Olive's (one of Lottie's seven puppies) first day at school, and at just 8 weeks old, she is already doing a great job. Her six brothers and sisters have joined their forever homes this weekend too.
We look forward to working with you, Olive!
10th September, 2025
A special update from Mrs Lees and Lottie:
I am thrilled to share some exciting news about a new addition to our Cheltenham Bournside Culture Team, arriving on Monday, 30th September. This new member will be a very special one - a second school therapy dog, joining our wonderful Lottie in supporting students across the school.
In July, Lottie, our beloved School Therapy Dog, became a proud mum to seven beautiful Black Labrador puppies. While six of them will soon be off to their forever homes, we are delighted that one will remain with us, continuing Lottie’s legacy here at Bournside. This puppy will be trained alongside their mum to support the wellbeing and emotional needs of our students.
In fact, I’m incredibly proud to share that two of Lottie’s puppies will also be joining schools as future therapy dogs - one locally at Warden Hill Primary School and another at a preschool in Penzance.
As we have learned from Lottie’s journey over the past three years, training a school therapy dog is a lengthy and dedicated process. Our new puppy will spend the first 18 months being socialised within the school environment, before undertaking formal assessments to achieve full therapy dog certification, just like Lottie and I did earlier this year.
There is overwhelming evidence of the positive impact school dogs can have, whether it’s helping students who are struggling, easing anxiety, boosting reading confidence (through reading sessions with the dog), or simply being a calming presence. Lottie’s work—and that of our previous therapy dog, Molly—has shown that dogs can play a significant role in enhancing both the emotional and educational development of students. They can also foster a sense of responsibility, empathy, and care among children.
Following best practice, we will select which puppy will join us when they are 8 weeks old. At this time, we don’t know whether our new team member will be male or female, but we’ve been closely monitoring the puppies’ behaviour and temperament to ensure a perfect fit. Of the seven puppies, five are in training to become school or therapy dogs, and we are excited to see their progress.
In the coming weeks, we will share more updates as our new school dog and their siblings begin their individual journeys. It has been a joy watching Lottie blossom into an exceptional school therapy dog, and now a brilliant mum as well.
If you’d like to see photos of the puppies and follow their journey before they leave for their forever homes, be sure to follow Lottie’s social media accounts for the latest updates.
Thank you for your continued support in making our school such a wonderful place to learn and grow.
Kind regards,
Mrs Lees
Assistant Headteacher and DSL