Welcome to our St Mary's Weekly Newsletter!
Let us Pray- Gweddiwn
November- Month of the Holy Souls
During the month of November, as a Catholic community, we pray for the souls of the faithfully departed that they may rest in the peace of Christ in Heaven.
As you can may have seen, our Messengers of Christ have made beautiful red and white poppies and have displayed them around the school to remember those who have lost their lives during wars both in the past and at this difficult time, and to encourage us all to continue to pray for peace in our world.
The Messengers of Christ, led by Mrs Wilkinson have placed a book of remembrance and reflection on the prayer focus table outside Mrs Acton's office. Children and staff are invited to write the names of family and friends who have passed away and any words of prayer and reflection. During the month of November, we will offer up all the prayers and reflections within our book of remembrance during our weekly whole school assemblies.
Shared Year 1, 2 and 5 Family Mass
Today, we joined together to celebrate Mass in school with our families. The theme of the Mass was 'Remembrance.' This theme was chosen by the children and it was a beautiful opportunity to come together in prayer and reflection to remember those who have gone before us. As always, we were so proud of the children and the way in which they participated respectfully and reverently during the Mass- it was a very moving service. Thank you to Father Jaspher and Deacon Michael for celebrating the Mass for us in the absence of Fr Nicholas. Thank you also to all family members who joined us in our celebrations. Your continued support and contribution to the Catholic life of our school is greatly appreciated.
Children in Need Day Friday 17th November
Every year, we enthusiastically support Children in Need day at St Mary's and our wonderful School Council reps organise a super bake sale to help us to raise as much money as we can to support children who are less fortunate than ourselves.
This year, you can dress up in your PJs, wear your Pudsey outfits, wear your hair in a CRAZY style or dress to impress in your favourite dance style ready to join our whole school Children in Need 'DANCEATHON' e.g. disco, 50s rock 'n roll, 70s disco, 80s pop, hip-hop/ street, Charleston etc. etc. (LOOK OUT FOR PHOTOS on SEESAW and on our SOCIAL MEDIA platforms!)
£1 donations will be taken on the gates - (bucket collections)
Children will need to bring in extra money to buy yummy cakes in the School Council BAKE SALE- cakes available from 20p- 50p each.
Please bring in cake donations on Friday morning!
As usual, we will inform the BBC of our fundraising efforts and hopefully we will see our name on the TV on Friday evening!
Year 3 and 4 Titanic Museum Trip
Years 3 & 4 Embark on a Titanic Journey! This week, our young explorers in Dosbarth Alyn, Clywedog and Conwy visited the Liverpool Maritime Museum to unravel the mysteries of 'Titanic: The Untold Story.' The exhibition proved to be a captivating addition to their ongoing big question, sparking curiosity and enjoyment among all attendees. Stay tuned for more thrilling learning experiences!"
Friends' Christmas School Fayre
If any St Mary's families would like to have a stall in our Christmas Fayre, the cost will be £5 per stall and £10 for local businesses. Please contact school if you are interested! Diolch
Santa Dash
If you are able to join us on our Santa Dash, please click on the link to book so we know who will be joining us! Diolch LINK
Storytime with Santa- during the Christmas Fayre
We are so lucky that Santa is passing through Wrexham on Thursday 23rd November and will be popping into our Christmas Fayre. He will have some small gifts for some very good children who wish to come to see him. His cheeky elves will be there to help out too, and will treat everyone to a delightful Christmas story. There will be two story-time sessions during the fayre- at 3:45 and 4:15. Booking forms will be issued next week and payment should be made in advance when booking forms are returned to school. Santa will check all the bookings and will allocate a story-time session for each child/ family. MORE INFORMATION NEXT WEEK
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:- Parotiaid with 98.4%
Dosbarth Palodau-97% Dosbarth Parotiaid-98.4% Dosbarth Pengwiniaid-91.7%, Dosbarth Robin Goch- 93.8%, Dosbarth Tulluanod-86.5%. Dosbarth Dryw- 87.5%
Key Stage 2 winners this week are:- Dyfi with 99.5%
Dosbarth Clywedog-94.2% , Dosbarth Conwy-96.5%, Dosbarth Alyn-96.5%, Dosbarth Dyfi-99.5%, Dosbarth Gwenfro-98%, Dosbarth Dyfrdwy-96.9%, Dosbarth Gwaun-94.9%
WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE TARGET - 96%
WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE- 94.7% (unfortunately we did not reach our target this week- illness and a number of early holidays being taken)
Please help us achieve our target this year!!
Free School Meals- Are you eligible?
May I remind all families who are eligible for free school meals to make an application via the link ‘Free school meals | Wrexham County Borough Council. This will not only provide your child with a daily free meal in school but will also allow parents the opportunity to apply for a Pupil Development Grant (PDG) | Wrexham County Borough Council to help with the cost of uniforms, resources, equipment and devices etc. By making your application, school will also receive the correct amount of funding from Welsh Government.
Please note:-
Your child is eligible to receive free school meals if you or your child receive the following...
• Income Support (IS)*
• Income Based Jobseekers Allowance (IBJSA)*
• Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• Income-related Employment Support Allowance (IR)
• Child Tax Credit - providing you’re not entitled to Working Tax Credit with an annual total income below the HMRC set limit
• Guarantee element of State Pension Credit
• Working Tax Credit 'run-on' - the payment someone may receive for a further four weeks after they stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
• Universal Credit - if you are working you must be earning less than £7,400 per year (£616.67 per month) to qualify for free school meal
From September 1st, all primary aged children (Reception- Year 6) in Wrexham can have a free school meal as part of the WG universal offer. However, if you are in receipt of the above benefits, please remember to make an application via the links above as well to ensure access to the PDG and to enable school to receive the additional funding.
I urge all families to take up this wonderful universal offer. Diolch
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: Sut wyt ti? How are you?
See LINK
Nursery & Reception-Hallie is going to Center Parcs with her family, Elliot has been to visit his dad in Liverpool and enjoyed a big ice-cream, Harri and Alfie went to Flip Out with their mum and dad, Luka went to Flip Out with his mum, dad and baby brother and Roche went to London with his family
Years 1 & 2-Lily has joined Dosbarth Dryw, Georgie is going to Center Parcs with her family, Oyintaena has moved to a new house and Franek is excited for his brother's birthday.
Years 3 & 4 - Tony is going to have a new bedroom, Mitchell is moving house, Zuzanna has been to Blue Planet, Benj has been to London and Cardiff, David has been to London, Owen has been to Liverpool, Julian's brother is coming to visit from Poland and his dad has a new car, Florence has been to Blackpool to see the lights, lots have been to see the fireworks, Daniel has started Tae Kwon-do, Akain has been to Manchester and Szymon has been to Poland. Niamh competed at a swimming gala and came 7th and 11th, Grace's auntie is having a baby, Julia M has started swimming lessons, Lea has been horse riding and the horse is gorgeos and is called Pixie, Isabella has started gymnastics, Pati won the raffle in gymnastics competition and Paul's wobbly tool came out. Pola has been to a safari park and maya has been to Disneyland Paris. George received badges from Beavers for walking, sleeping over, using Welsh and sharing.
Year 5- This week, Year 5 had a great time creating beautiful lanterns for the Nightingale House Hospice lantern walk! Ella took part in a gymnastics competition in Deeside and did really well. Theo's mum and dad went to a wedding, Fabian enjoyed the Wxm vs Port Vale match at the Racecourse, Sophie's aunty is staying for the weekend and her mum finished her show called 'Betty Blue Eyes.' Iris went to see the Trolls' movie and Nathan is getting a chrome book. Ella took part in a gymnastics competition in Deeside and did very well.
Year 6- Gabriel and Maks are going to Ninja Warrior in Liverpool and Evie won a silver medal in gymnastics
END OF TERM TOCYN ENFYS DRAWS
Apologies for omitting this news before half term
Well done to Ricky, David, Bobby and Elliot for wining the September and October Tocyn Enfys draws
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