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Headteacher's Letter - Autumn Term 2023

Headteacher's Letter
End of  Autumn Term 2023

Dear Parents/Carers,

As the end of the term approaches, I wanted to write to thank you for your ongoing support of all that we do at St Mary’s.

This autumn term has been an incredibly busy one but equally very positive and productive.  There has been much to celebrate, not least the way in which Year 7 have started their time at St Mary’s and settled so quickly and efficiently.  It was a pleasure to meet so many of the Year 7 parents/carers at our recent parents’ evenings and it was wonderful to receive such positive feedback about how pleased you all are with the start your children have made.

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Our Year 11s have been working incredibly hard over the last 4 weeks on their mock exams.  This has been a fairly gruelling timetable with multiple papers across their various subjects.  At the time of writing there are just a handful of practical exams left and we will shortly be able to see how the pupils have done.  After a break over the Christmas holidays, it will be an intense spring term for Year 11 and we aim to continue supporting them with various revision and intervention sessions taking place daily after school and there will also be some subject specific sessions taking place across the February half-term and Easter holidays – details to follow.

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Advent Fayre

 

Thank you to all who supported our recent Advent Fayre which raised an astonishing £3,985.57.  This incredible total will support both CAFOD and the PTFA at St Mary’s who do such great work in fundraising and helping us to complement our school budget and provide our pupils with equipment and resources.  I was hugely impressed with our pupils who put themselves forward as stall holders – they took complete responsibility for the initial idea and the subsequent running of the stalls and it all made for a very enjoyable and festive evening.

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Presentation Evening

It was also lovely to see last year’s Year 11 again at our recent Presentation Evening.  Such an occasion is important in acknowledging their achievements and presenting their prizes and awards to recognise their contribution to the school.  We were joined by guest speaker Tom Kennedy, himself a former pupil, now working for the Government in communications.

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Enrichment

 

Last month, our choir supported ‘G4’ in a performance at Hereford Cathedral and rehearsals for ‘Back to the 80’s’ are in full swing.  The production will take place next February and promises to be very entertaining.  There have also been theatre trips to Stratford, an MFL trip to Paris, and of course our annual Battlefields trip.

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As a school we have competed at a very high level in Hockey and Netball with results which have taken us through to regional level.  Some of our pupils have also competed at national level in swimming and placed in very creditable positions, a fantastic achievement!

In addition to the previously mentioned sum raised via the Advent Fayre, as a school we have raised £1,636.36 to date for CAFOD following non-uniform days, bake sales, face painting, sporting competitions etc.  It is so important that our pupils are involved in initiatives like the ‘Reverse Advent’ campaign with a view to helping those less fortunate than ourselves.  However, I am very aware that we could not do this without your ongoing support and commitment.

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Reward Assemblies

It has been wonderful to pop in and see some of the Rewards Assemblies which Mrs Walton has been leading this week.  The pupils are getting recognition and acknowledgement for their achievements and also contributing to the success of their respective Houses.  These assemblies will now be a regular feature as we progress throughout the year.

 

Maths Challenge

 

On Wednesday 20th December we also held our first Inter-House Maths Challenge for all year groups across the day in the sports hall.  The day was a huge success and we clearly have some excellent mathematicians!

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Christmas Jumper Day / Lunch

It was also great to see how many of our pupils took part in our Christmas Jumper Day and the school Christmas lunch.  There was certainly a festive feel around the school on Wednesday!

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We will be working almost right up to Christmas this year but with Christmas Jumper Day, Christmas Lunch and our Carol Service, we will do our very best to do so in festive spirits.  It would be lovely to see you at our Carol Service on Thursday evening at 6pm, but if not, I would like to wish you a happy and peaceful Christmas and I look forward to working with you and your children in 2024.

Best wishes

Stuart Wetson
Headteacher