Welcome to our St Mary's Weekly Newsletter!
Let us Pray- Gweddiwn
Start of Lent 2024
Ash Wednesday - 14th February
St Valentine's day- 14th February
Shared Year Group Family Mass- Y3 & Y6-
On Thursday, our Year 3 and 6 classes joined together with Fr Nicholas and Deacon Michael to celebrate Mass in the cathedral. It was very special to welcome families to join us and we are very grateful for your continued support in the Catholic life of our school. Da iawn to all the children who had a special role to play in the Mass- readers, servers, those who brought up the offertory procession and thanks to everyone for the beautiful singing! Well done pawb!
EXCITING NEWS!!!
This week, I received a very BIG surprise email from the Leader newspaper. It read...
Apparently, some of our AMAZING parents have nominated our school for PRIMARY SCHOOL OF THE YEAR in the Leader Education awards! We are all delighted to have been nominated and shortlisted for this wonderful award, and are very touched by your kindness and unfailing support for our school and staff. Even if we are not successful in winning this award, we are truly honoured to be regarded in such high esteem by those who mean the world to us! DIOLCH O GALON! Heartfelt thanks to you all. The awards ceremony takes place on Thursday 14th March so we will all keep our fingers crossed until then!
Children's Mental Health Week-Your Voice Matters
5th-11th February
A huge thank you to our Eco Team and School Council for organising such an amazing Children's Mental Health week! Special thanks to Miss Davies, Mrs Robertson and Miss Edwards. We have all learnt that OUR VOICE MATTERS! Da iawn pawb!
Thank you to everyone for donating money to break the rules today! I must admit I thought I was in the wrong school this morning! Crazy hairstyles, coloured hair spray, tattoos. face painting and no school uniform! Shocking behaviour... but LOTS OF FUN!! Thank you to Miss Davies and everyone who helped organise such a wonderful week, promoting the use of our voices to express ourselves and make a positive difference in our lives and the lives of those around us! Da iawn pawb!
Cuts to School Budgets- Letter from Wrexham Primary Headteachers' Federation letter shared via email and Seesaw
School Budget Letter from Mrs Bennington- Chair of Governors shared via email and Seesaw
Eco Team News
End of Term Discos- postponed until Thursday 21st March (due to weather)
Diolch to DJ 'Tooley Tables' for organising mini- discos for children today and to the School Council & Mrs Robertson for organising a fantastic themed tuck shop! Ardderchog pawb!
Craft Event in Ty Pawb
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:- Tulluanod with 97.7%
Dosbarth Palodau-96.9% Dosbarth Parotiaid-88% Dosbarth Pengwiniaid-91%, Dosbarth Robin Goch- 93.2%, Dosbarth Tulluanod-97.7%. Dosbarth Dryw- 95%
Key Stage 2 winners this week are:- Gwenfro with 97.6%
Dosbarth Clywedog-94% , Dosbarth Conwy-94.2%, Dosbarth Alyn-92.8%, Dosbarth Dyfi-97.2%, Dosbarth Gwenfro-97.6%, Dosbarth Dyfrdwy-92.1%, Dosbarth Gwaun-94.6%
WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE TARGET - 96%
WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE- 94.1% - 1.7% improvement on last week- well done.
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: 'Ga i chwarae efo ti? Can I play with you?
See FIDIO link
Early Years- Harri got a trophy from his football club, Sam is going skiing to Andorra, Isabella is going to Center Parcs, Enzo is going on holiday on an aeroplane, Emilia is going to gymnastics, Oliver is going to Man United stadium tour, Lennon is going to the caravan and Nathan is going to Banana Ben's.
Years 1 and 2-Erin is starting swimming lessons, Amelia W passed Wave 3 and Oyintaena's aunty has had a new baby, Maria has got her yellow stripe intaekwondo, and Zaneta is starting swimming lessons. William had fun celebrating his birthday at Round the Twist, Katlyn also had a great party at Round the Twist and Lily Rose is going to see a pantomime
Years 3 and 4-Zion has started swimming lessons, Grace has moved up to swim challenge GOLD, Max has joined Wxm library and Niamh is trialling for two swimming galas.
Year 5- Ella is joining Sophia's dance group this week, Gracjan is going to Spain, Annabelle is having a sleepover party with Ella, Ivy and Sophia, Sophia's aunty Caroline is coming to stay and Sophia is going to Britain's Got Talent. Jian's mum has turned 38, Zuzanna's mum has turned 41, Evie & Ivy might be having a sleepover, Tomasz is getting an Xbox and is very excited and Matilda's nan is going to India.
Year 6- Issy G is going to Manchester for a fencing competition
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