Welcome to our St Mary's Weekly Newsletter!
Let us Pray- Gweddiwn
Feast of St Luke the Evangelist- October 18th
Click on the link to hear about St Luke
October- Month of the Holy Rosary
In the Catholic Church, May and October are months traditionally dedicated to Our Lady and the Rosary. Mary, the mother of God, was a loving mother and a model for for us all. The Rosary is a form of prayer that helps us to reflect on the life of Mary and Jesus
St Richard Gwyn Pilgrimage Mass- Sunday 20th October 3pm in the Cathedral
Everyone is welcome to attend the Mass in the cathedral at 3pm on Sunday. Mrs Wilkinson and I will be there and we encourage children and their families to attend. Please could children wear school uniform if you are able to join us.
Friends of St Mary's Autumn Discos
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ECO Request to all families
Tocyn Enfys Draw
Next week we will be drawing October Tocyn Enfys winners
Attendance Matters
Please note school starts 08:55 and finishes at 15:15.
St Mary's Attendance Race 2024-25
Please remember that 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:-
Dosbarth Robin Goch with a fantastic- 98.1%
Dosbarth Palodau- 92.4% Dosbarth Parotiaid- 88.2%- Dosbarth Pengwiniad-93.3%- Dosbarth Robin Goch- 98.1% Dosbarth Tylluanod- 96.7% Dosbarth Dryw-85.9%
Key Stage 2 winners this week are :-
Dosbarth Dyfrdwy again with 96 %
Dosbarth Clywedog-95.4% Dosbarth Conwy- 94.3% Dosbarth Alyn-95% Dosbarth Gwenfro-95.6% Dosbarth Dyfrdwy- 96% Dosbarth Gwaun- 90.3%
WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE TARGET- 96%
THIS WEEK'S WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE - 93.6% - a dip on last week!
Forthcoming events and dates for your diary
Year 5 & 6 Xplore Workshop- Wednesday 23rd October
School Discos- Autumn themed fancy dress- Thursday 24th October 4:30-5:30 (FP) 5:45-7pm (KS2)
End of Term Thursday 24th October.- Welsh colours Eisteddfod fundraiser- £1 per child please
INSET DAY/ Staff training day - Friday 25th October
Class Assemblies 2024-25
Today we held our first class assembly of this school year. Dosbarth Gwaun led a wonderful assembly based on their work inspired by the book Little Bird Flies. The children shared their work through drama, song and by reading examples of their high quality descriptive writing. It brought a tear to my eye seeing the children's confidence and enthusiasm in their own ability and in their willingness to write- da iawn pawb. The lyrics of the final song were generated by AI from Anabelle's own piece of writing about the character Bridie. AMAZING! Ardderchog pawb. Parents will be amazed and very proud of their children when they attend the assembly this afternoon.
SCHOOL OFFICE HOURS
Please be aware that there is no cover in the school office between these hours:-
08:30-09:00 (mornings)
11:45-13:15 (lunchtimes)
15:10-15:20 (afternoons)
Wrexham Well-being Portal
The place to go for anyone looking for information or support for children and families.
Make a request for support
The Wellbeing Portal offers a way to access a number of services in one go, without you having to repeat your story again and again. If you need support in completing the online request form, please call 01978 292094
Please click on the link
School Dinner orders
Please ensure that school dinners are pre-ordered at home. Teachers should not be ordering meals in school, as previously advised by WCBC. Thank you
Patrwm Yr Wythnos
The Criw Cymraeg’s ‘Patrwm yr Wythnos’ (Phrase of the week) this week is: Croeso/ Welcome
See VIDEO LINK
Nursery & Reception- Eden is going to a wedding this weekend, George S is going swimming and Maxine went to the forest with her mum and dad.
Years 1 & 2-Noah went to Hawarden farm shop, Elliot made a bug hotel at home, Jan's 7th and 8th teeth are wobbly, Lucja had a visit from the tooth fairy, Dewi went to Squirrels, Nancy went to Park Hall Farm and made a pumpkin face. Hunter's mum has a new car, Nikola starts swimming lessons today, Kharis is going to a pumpkin festival, Sammy has been working hard at home on his maths, Lucja's nanna is here from Poland, Abigail is going to Ireland, Harri and Alfie went to their first swimming lesson, Zayden and Emilia are starting swimming and Loura had a great birthday.
Years 3 &4- Szymon has been to a water park in Blackpool, Franek has passed Wave 6, Hanna has got a red belt in kick boxing, Hania has passed Wave 6, Dorian is starting swimming lessons, Nathan is getting ready for his First Holy Communion, Daniel is starting in a football club, Oyintaena has been awarded a football trophy for helping his team win a match. Alfie Jay's mum 'finally' came third and beat him in an endurance horse ride, Ariana had her suit and belt in Taekwondo and Madison enjoyed dancing at the tower ballroom last weekend. Florence has a dance competition on Saturday, Paulina is going on holiday and Clara is going to Ireland. Vanessa has 92% in swimming and Rene is going to Blackpool. Artur has moved to Wave 6.
Year 5 & 6-Paul was excited for his brother's birthday, Gabriel's Auntie and uncle came back from Sweden, Raissa's mum is having her birthday this week, Dylan's auntie has a dog, Max's auntie is coming for a visit and Thomas' cousin is visiting at the weekend. Isabella won 2 medals and a trophy in her dance competition, it's Daniel's sister's birthday on Sunday, Pati caught a leaf. Annabelle is having a baby cousin, Adam W is going to visit his sister in Manchester, Sophie is going to pick pumpkins this weekend
Please email school/ Seesaw class teachers to share good news for our weekly newsletter. Thank you.
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
Support the Friends of St Mary’s
to raise much needed funds for the benefit of all our children Friends of St. Mary’s School are now registered with easyfundraising, which means you can raise FREE donations for us every time you shop online. Over 4,000 shops and sites will donate to us when you use easyfundraising to shop with them – at no extra cost to yourself!
These donations really mount up and make a BIG difference to us, so we’d really appreciate it if you could take a moment to sign up and support us. It’s completely FREE and only takes a moment.
Do it today- Sign up by clicking on the link below
Please encourage your family and friends to do the same.
Keeping everyone safe- Covid 19
Local Authority advice remains that all children and staff who are displaying symptoms of illness or testing positive on an LFT or PCR test should not come to school and continue to isolate.
In addition to the 3 classic symptoms of a cough, high temperature and loss of taste or smell, we are noticing that many children who are testing positive are also displaying some of the following symptoms :- vomiting, headaches, runny nose, sore throat (symptoms similar to the common cold)