The Chronicle

Dear Parents

I have been fortunate to have attended the Catholic Independent Schools’ Conference with Mr Hester in Liverpool where we have benefited from some inspiring educational talks and seminars.  Archbishop Malcom MacMahon celebrated Mass for all delegates earlier today and this brought the conference to a close.  I always try to bring some of what I learn back into our school.  I am grateful that staff have been keeping me updated on the various events in school over the past couple of days and am particularly grateful to Mr Cottrill and Ms Dyer for all they have done in my absence.

On Monday this week, the J6 classes enjoyed an informative visit to Coombe Abbey to learn more about rivers.  My thanks to Mrs Lammas for organising this outing and you can read more about their findings later in the Chronicle. I know that everyone who participated enjoyed the visit despite the cold.

I am grateful to Mrs Glen-Roots for leading the celebration assembly this morning and have been informed that Toby Lucas played a lovely piece of music on the cello; well done Toby.  Last week Holly Lloyd-Evans sang a beautiful solo during assembly.  I am always most impressed by anyone who can perform on stage and to perform solo takes bravery and confidence.  I know that there are many young people in school who are able to play an instrument, sing or have a special talent and we will continue to support all those children and nurture their abilities.

Congratulations to all of our stars of the week and I look forward to hearing more about their individual awards later.  I have also been told that our Formula 1 group, ‘Speed Stingers’, made a presentation to everyone this morning.  If you are able to support our young budding designers, please do get in touch with Mrs Spillane and she will be only too happy to hear from you and in return the F1 group will be able to promote your company on merchandise and on our pit display, in addition to local media coverage and VIP tickets with other company sponsors.

As you may have noticed, we held our Open Day on Tuesday which was incredibly successful and I have received some very positive feedback and complimentary comments about the school and our pupil guides.  The children who escorted our guests around school spoke with pride and enthusiasm, something which was also noted during our inspection.  Thank you to all of you involved in the day, particularly Mrs Jenny Vaughan.

Father Kevin said Mass today to celebrate the beginning of a new school term and calendar year.   The focus of today’s Mass was to contemplate how we can all make changes in our lives, no matter how small, which will enable us to serve God.   Congratulations to Martha Summers who received RE Book of the Week for her piece about her own personal beliefs and the difficulties in developing and exploring your own faith.

This week has seen an unprecedented amount of sickness across the school and I hope that the weekend will give children the rest they need to recover from the various bugs circulating.  If your child is suffering from a sickness or stomach bug, please ensure that they remain absent from school until 48 hours after the last episode.

I am sure that you will already know that our pro-active PTA have organised an Auction of Promises which opens today.  There is always something which is worth your bid and I would urge you to support their efforts as all proceeds will raise money from which the children will benefit.

We share our best wishes with our swimmers who are representing the Midlands at the ISA National Gala in the Olympic pool this weekend.  We look forward to hearing how Eva Plevin and Lily Carroll do on Sunday.

I wish you all a happy and relaxing weekend.

God Bless

Robert Duigan