Headmaster's Welcome
Dear Parents
Thank you to the whole school community for their prayers, kindness and love shown towards the those who are suffering in the Ukraine. We have all pulled together within a short time frame to show our support for the crisis and will continue to keep the momentum going with fund raising taking place next week. As mentioned in my communication earlier this week, we have also shared various websites and resources with the staff in order to help them answer any questions that the pupils may have regarding the war in Ukraine. I am extremely grateful to the Junior 5 girls, School Council, parents and members of staff for taking the initiative and beginning the process of collecting items which will be transported to Poland at the earliest opportunity or for preparing prayer cards for the children or for arranging the cake sale.
The cake sale will take place on Tuesday 8 March and we ask that all children bring a £1 donation for their cake. A fundraising page has been created by Mrs Burley which will also enable parents to make a further donation, should they wish, and all money raised will go directly to (DEC) The British Red Cross whish is supporting families in Ukraine. We will all be able to track the progress of the fundraising online.
This week, the children have been able to learn first-hand about different religions as we embraced One World Week. Visits have taken place to areas of worship including a Mosque, Gurdwara, Temple, Synagogue and our local churches. We also were able to attend dance workshops, led by an Indian dancer and were entertained by the Pilgrim Puppets with their message of ‘The Lost Sheep’. There has been so much for everyone to enjoy and learn, not just the children, and I would like to thank Mrs Jackson-Mayne, class teachers and the office staff who have worked hard to make this week the success that it has been.
World Book Day is always a feast for the eyes when staff and children dress up as book characters. Today I saw outfits that I have never seen before…that includes Mr Cottrill’s costume! Thank you to Mrs Horan and Mrs Steeples for co-ordinating events for this day and I hope the children look forward to using their book voucher.
Today was a wonderful assembly as I welcomed more children into the hall so that we could witness the superb choir perform ‘Sing’. As I hope you will agree, if you watch the assembly recording, the children sang beautifully. Their commitment and expert tuition from Mrs Olden is to be whole-heartedly commended. Elsie in Junior 6 also performed an excellent solo piece in assembly. Our Stars of the Week were: Harper, George, Royce, Josh, Ashleigh, Charlie, Oscar, Malachi, Evie, Isabelle, Arisha, Evie, George and Aaron. Another super collection of Da Vinci Awards was presented today; this week I awarded them to Junior 6 for their efforts in mathematics, sport, English, religious education and games. Congratulations to everyone!
I had the pleasure of making the first draw of the PTA 200 Club and the winners have been confirmed as Mr M Jones, Mrs K Haviland and Mrs J Greevy – congratulations on your win. If you have yet to join the club and would like to raise money for the school and have an opportunity to win a prize fund, please contact our PTA.
We have welcomed a new member of staff to school this week. Mr Hunt joins the Estates Team working with Mr Luis and will be on site every day, helping keep our beautiful school in tip top condition. He will also be on duty at the end of the school day helping to ensure that carline and collections operate as safely and efficiently as possible.
May I take this opportunity to remind everyone that parents should please arrive at the allocated time and area for collection. If you do park in the local residential area, please remember not to block driveways or dropped kerbs and allow safe and easy passage for other vehicles. Vehicle engines should not be left running if waiting to collect your child. It will undoubtedly become busier as we return to our normal assembly routine and I have therefore arranged for the school field to be open every Friday from 8.00 am to ease congestion. I would request that parents who are attending assemblies please park on our school playing fields. We have a, regularly reviewed, traffic risk assessment for the movement of vehicles onsite. The essence is that all drivers and pedestrians remain vigilant, adhere to the direction of flow and speed limit and exercise care and patience at all times. A copy of the risk assessment is available on request.
I have also written to our Nursery parents today to provide an update on staffing developments within Little Crackers Nursery. My communication can be found on the Nursery page of this newsletter.
As planned, next week we will be raising money for another charity, Mary’s Meals. This charity has always been close to our hearts and their vision is that every child in the world should be able to receive at least one good meal every day. I would like to thank Mrs Simmonds who has worked very hard to prepare for the Skipathon which will take place on Monday next week. I will be able to update you further next week with a total of monies raised. Thank you very much for your contribution to this essential cause.
Online parent consultation evenings will also take place next week and I hope that you have been able to book an appointment with your child’s teacher. If there is a need to book another appointment, please contact your child’s teacher directly to arrange a convenient time. They will be very happy to arrange a suitable time.
Whilst Covid restrictions are now starting to be relaxed, we will continue with our enhanced cleaning in school, good ventilation, encourage adults to wear masks in crowded indoor areas for any length of time and keep meetings online wherever possible, for example. Our ‘bubbles’ will begin to change in school, with year groups starting to share assemblies, music, drama and sports but we will endeavour to keep the pupils close to their own year group. A number of ‘unlockdown’ measures, including being vigilant and reacting to symptoms, are being discussed at present and these will be shared with parents next week. We will be mindful of the need for relative normality and look to balance this with due care for the vulnerable or anxious in our school community.
Thank you very much to all the pupils who have volunteered to help at Open Day tomorrow, along with the staff on duty. The day is somewhat different to previous Open Days as visitors have had to book certain time slots and will be guided on tour by a member of staff who will ensure that our current Covid measures are followed.
I should like to thank Father Kevin for leading our Ash Wednesday Mass this week; and also, Mrs Jackson-Mayne, Mrs Olden, Mrs Simmonds and the Junior 3 staff and pupils for preparing so well for the Mass. The pupils were outstanding in everything they did, from singing to reading and it was a most reverent occasion. We all look to the next forty days of Lent as a time to reflect on how we can be better people, we look to say ‘sorry’ for the wrongs that we have done, we look to spend more time in prayer and self-reflection and we also try to give up something or do something for others and to contribute any extra savings to a worthy cause.
I should like to wish everyone a restful and happy weekend.
God bless,
Mr Duigan
