Croeso to our St Mary's Weekly Newsletter!
Let us Pray- Gweddiwn
We have all been learning to recite the Hail Mary in Welsh. Please click on the link to pray with us LINK
Some VERY GOOD NEWS!
I am delighted to announce that after a change of heart, Mrs Ruth Williams has decided to remain as Additional Needs Coordinator at St Mary's.
I am sure that you will be pleased to hear that Mrs Williams' decision will allow us to continue move forwards with confidence and continue to offer high quality ALN support in St Mary's. Well done Mrs Williams- we are glad you are staying with us!
Half Term Break
School closes today for the half term holidays. We reopen to all classes on TUESDAY 4th June. Please note: We have a Staff INSET day on Monday 3rd June.
Thankfully, we managed to avoid the heavy rain and were able to hold all our sports days this week.
On Monday, our Key Stage 2 children had a wonderful time on Belle Vue park and all children did their best and participated in all events with great enthusiasm and sportsmanship. The sprint finals were especially exciting! Well done to all Year 5 and 6 children and special thanks to all staff and pupils of St Joseph's for providing their support. Da iawn pawb.
On Tuesday, the day started with our Early Years' children participating in a special fairytale- themed sports day on the nursery playground. This is the first time that we have chosen to use the playground for the younger children's sports and we were pleased that it was such a great success providing a safe, enclosed and more intimate event for for us all to enjoy. The children were all very excited and did a great job! The fairytale party hat race was a firm favourite with us all! Well done Palodau, Pengwiniad a Parotiaid- you were all super!
During the afternoon, our Years 1 and 2 children held their sports day on the park and again, great fun was had by all. It is always a delight to watch how kind and supportive our children are with each other- we are always so proud of them all! A special DA IAWN to all mummies, daddies and other family members who bravely joined the 'Grown Ups' horse race! You were amazing and the children absolutely loved cheering for you all! Great sports- thank you!
FRIENDS' SCHOOL DISCO
Special thanks to everyone who put on their dancing shoes and came to last night's discos in school! We had a fantastic time and raised some more much needed funds for our school. Da iawn pawb and thank you once again to DJ Tooley Tables and guest DJs for a great evening's music! Thanks to the Friends for organising the events and the refreshments. Diolch yn fawr iawn.
Tour de France- French day at St Mary's- Thursday 13th June
As part of our School Development Plan, we are all starting to learn some French. Mrs Roberts has started a French club and this has been a great hit with the Year 1 & 2 children. To kick-start our whole school approach, we will be holding a French dress up day where all classes will participate in French activities. More information to follow via Seesaw.
Years 3 & 4 WW 2 Matchbox Challenge
Congratulations to the winners of the Matchbox Challenge who were awarded their certificates and prizes during the KS 2 assembly this week. Da iawn to Alfie Jay and Maja (Clywedog), Andy (Conwy) and Grace G (Alyn). Well done to all participants and their families. The standard and quality of all entries was outstanding! Da iawn pawb! A great idea and a wonderful challenge for everyone.
Can you help please? - Tuesday 21st May- between 10am-11am
One of our Nursery children's parents parked their car opposite the garage on the corner of Lea Road between 10 and 11 am on Tuesday 21st May. They returned to their car after the Early Years' sports to find this dreadful damage. If you witnessed another car hitting this black Mercedes, please contact the school office. Many thanks
A professional whole school photograph will be taken on 19th June by Tempest Photography
Attendance Matters
Please note school starts 08:55 and finishes at 15:15.
Please remember, children should not worry about having to stay off school if they are poorly. Children should only attend school if they are fit and well enough to do so. Routine appointments, holidays during term-time, days off for birthdays however, are not valid reasons to stay off school.
Thank you for your continued support and understanding with this very important matter.
Foundation Phase winners this week are:- Dryw with 95.9%
Dosbarth Palodau-95.4% Dosbarth Parotiaid-92.7% Dosbarth Pengwiniaid-94%, Dosbarth Robin Goch- 95.8%, Dosbarth Tulluanod-86.5%. Dosbarth Dryw- 95.9%
Key Stage 2 winners this week are:- Gwaun with 96.4%
GWAUN ARE ON THE MOVE AGAIN!
Dosbarth Clywedog-93.3% , Dosbarth Conwy-85.8%, Dosbarth Alyn-93.1%, Dosbarth Dyfi-92%, Dosbarth Gwenfro-95.2%, Dosbarth Dyfrdwy-93.2%, Dosbarth Gwaun-96.4%
WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE TARGET - 96%
WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE- 92.9%- another slight increase on last week-good news!
Please help us achieve our target next week!!
Patrwm Yr Wythnos
The Criw Cymraeg’s ‘Patrwm yr Wythnos’ (Phrase of the week) this week is: Dwi'n ffrind i ti- I'm your friend
Class Assemblies 2023-24
Today Dosbarth Parotiaid and Dosbarth Pengwiniaid led the whole school assembly and shared their learning about the story of the 'Tri Mochyn Bach.' It was an amazing assembly and we were so proud of everyone! Da iawn children! What ambitious and confident children! Mummies and daddies are going to be so proud when they watch you this afternoon!
Please see the list of class assembly dates for the school year ahead below:-
Early Years- Isabella has passed Wave 1, Zofia went for a sleepover to her grandma's, Ashani, Alice, Hallie , Isabella, Willow and Zofia went to Abigail's party, Luka went on a bike ride to Erddig with his family, Enzo went to the beach with his gran and grandad, Harri and Alfie's cousins visited and they got the pool out and had a BBQ, Harri got a trophy for football, Isabella is going to Yorkshire with her cousins over half term, Daniel went swimming and splashed his mum, Ashani was very excited to be going to her first swimming lesson, Nancie Mae has a new iPad, Hallie is going out with her Rainbows' friends, Alice went to her cousin's BBQ birthday party and Zayden had visitors and they playing in the swimming pool. Luka has been awarded a football trophy, Loura went to a hotel with her family and had a teddy called Lily from Build-A- Bear, Noah's daddy went to Ireland over the weekend, Lucja is going to Abigail's party and Abigail is very excited about her party. Freya is going to Nancy's house, Nancy went to the beach and had lots of ice-cream, Owen has had some caterpillars and a Venus Flytrap for his birthday and Akia went on a train to the circus.
Years 1 and 2- Oyintaena had a whote belt in Taekwondo, Joshua is starting futsal. Eulla is excited to go to the Philippines at Christmas, Nathan is starting Taekwondo and the Owls are happy to have Dorian back from Poland! Hania had a wonderful weekend shopping with her family, it's Antoni's mum's birthday and Rylie's dad's birthday. Elliot had a great mini-break in a caravan and George is hoping to start magic lessons soon! Joanna B is starting swimming lessons, Jiyanna is going to see her cousin and Neave is going to her aunty's wedding. Fiadh passed Wave 3
Years 3 and 4- Vanessa K has made her First Holy Communion, Paulina has gone to Egypt, Abigail's nan has 3 more guinea pigs, Andy has a football match and Flo and Joia have Delta dancing exams. Dylan's uncle is coming home from New Zealand, Julai M has a dance exam, Paul's tooth has fallen out, Isabella is dancing at Wrexham Racecourse, Noah is going to be a big brother and Pati is going to Malta.
Year 5- Matilda is going to Blackpool, Mollie E is going to Salou in 6 weeks, Molly H is going to York next week and then to Cyprus in August. Ella took part in a gymnastics competition and we wish Sophia, Ella and Ivy all the best in their dance competition today!
Year 6-Amelia and Evie won medals in gymnastics competitions
Local Support for Families
At this difficult time of austerity, please see some information about local services that are available to provide support to families in need.
Please contact school if you find yourself in a difficult situation and need some help/ support to signpost you to an appropriate service. Your requests will be handled in confidence and with sensitivity. Diolch. Mrs Acton.
If you need help from our foodbank there are a few simple steps to follow. THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP IS TO GET A FOODBANK VOUCHER.
In order to provide the most appropriate help for the circumstances of your situation we work with local agencies. If they feel you are struggling to put food on the table, they will issue you with a foodbank voucher. The local agency can also provide long term support if needed to help address some of the issues behind the reasons for your crisis. Agencies we work with include: Citizens Advice, housing support officers, children’s centres, health visitors, social services and some local charities.
1. GET IN TOUCH WITH US.
If you call or email our foodbank we can talk through your situation and put you in touch with a relevant local agency.
2. ARRANGE A VISIT TO THE REFERRAL AGENCY.
They will discuss your situation and supply you with a foodbank voucher where appropriate.
If you can’t afford food, you can call 0808 2082138 (freephone) to speak to a trained and independent Citizens Advice agent (Monday to Friday, 10am to 4pm). Please note this number is for people who do not have enough money for food – if you are a local organisation or charity that works with people who might need the food bank, please contact us directly.
Alternatively, please call 0300 330 1178 to speak to Wrexham’s Citizen’s Advice Bureau, who will be able to issue you with a food bank voucher if necessary.
3. BRING YOUR FOODBANK VOUCHER TO YOUR NEAREST FOODBANK CENTRE.
You can find a list of our local centres and opening times here. When you arrive, we’ll welcome you with a warm drink and our trained volunteers will chat with you about your situation. We’ll also discuss any dietary needs you may have and exchange your foodbank voucher for a parcel of three days of emergency food. We’ll also help to support you in any other ways that we can. Most of our foodbank centres offer a cafe style environment and our aim is to provide non-judgemental support at the point of crisis.
If you have any further questions our FAQ’s page may help, or feel free to give us a call.
Yellow and blue (YaB group ltd) is a social enterprise non profit project. Underpinning community projects including positive pathways, food provision and social isolation beating events and activities. With a digital vision within the community - we aim to support vulnerable groups whilst creating a vibrant, supportive and uplifting experience. Creating moments, chances and smiles when people need it most.
Please get in touch by emailing:- info@yellowandblue.org
Pupil Development Grant
The Welsh Government funded Pupil Development Grant is available to help towards the costs of a child’s school uniform and equipment, for those on a low income. Any child eligible for free school meals in the year groups listed below are eligible. However, those receiving free school meals due to transitional protection arrangement would not be eligible.
Depending on the school year your child will be entering in September 2021 you could receive a grant of £125 or £200. Link
Anyone eligible for free school meals and in the following year groups will qualify for the grant: Entering reception class in primary school, Entering school years 1 to 11, In a special school, special needs resource base or pupil referral unit and are aged 4 to 15.For any looked after children of compulsory school age who are not receiving free school meals, please email uniformgrant@wrexham.gov.uk for an application form.
Welsh Courses for Parents
Are you interested in becoming a volunteer in school?
Here at St Mary’s we are very keen to involve parents, grandparents and family members in the life of the school. We are always looking for volunteers to help out a wide range of activities such as school trips and walking the children to sporting events. We are also very happy to invite volunteers to share special skills, interests or experiences to enhance the children’s opportunities or provision e.g. gardening, sewing, sharing job skills/ experiences etc.
If you would like to be involved in any volunteer work for the school, please click on the link and complete and return the forms attached.https://stmarys-wxm.co.uk/about-us/forms/volunteer-form-2/
Please note:- All volunteers will be subject to DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) clearance. Thank you
Many thanks.
Welsh Government Announcement
Physical punishment of children is now illegal in Wales. Children have the same protection from assault as adults. This is to protect children and their rights. To find out more visit: http://gov.wales/EndPhysicalPunishment