St John Vianney School Newsletter 14.11.2025

Headteacher's Message

Dear Parents and Carers, I hope you have had a good week? It has been a very busy one in school. This week we have welcomed the Diocesan ‘Anchor of Hope’ into School and explored with our pupils the symbolism of the Anchor as part of the 25 year Jubilee Celebrations. On Wednesday, we had services in the Chapel which linked the themes of Remembrance and Hope, giving the pupils the opportunity to remember those who have passed before us and to identify their future hopes for themselves, their families and the world. The pupils were really respectful and the services provoked some excellent responses. The Anchor was then passed on to St Theresa’s RC Primary on Thursday morning by members of the school Chaplaincy team. Pupils have also been bringing in prayer petitions for their prayer tables, as we recognise November as the month of the Holy Souls.

Additionally, in our Collective Worship activities we have been looking at the role of Saints in the Catholic Church. Children are learning about a different Saint each day, in school during this month, identifying how they became Saints. We are learning that the Saints in the Catholic Church are inspirations and role models and showed us behaviours which if we follow, can help us all become better versions of ourselves. On Tuesday this week, we appointed Mr Damant and Ms Nesbitt to Deputy Headteacher positions in school. Both, I am sure, will be fantastic in their new roles and will be critical in our development work over the next few years. We wish them well in their new jobs.

Mrs Murphy has collected shoe boxes of gifts for the charity ‘Operation Christmas Child’ once again this year. We always get a fantastic response from families and this year we have collected over 50 shoe boxes for less fortunate children to receive at Christmas. Thank you to all those parents and families for the effort made in supporting this really worthwhile charity; your support is really appreciated. We have a number of events planned for the next 5 weeks in school as we build up to the celebrations of Christmas. The newsletter will let you know what we have planned each week. Please make every attempt to read it.

• KS4/5 Beatbox Workshops - Thu 13th November
• Positive Noticing Day - Wed 19th November
• Chaplaincy Team Retreat - Wed 26th November
• Gulliver’s World Trip C2, C3 and C11 - Fri 28th November
• Deep Learning Day; Literacy - Thu 27th November
• Advent Launch - Weds 3rd December
• First Friday mass - Fri 5th December
• Coffee Afternoon Parents - Fri 28th Nov at 1:45pm
• Trafford’s Got Talent Comp - Fri 5th December PM
• CAFT Christmas activity Day - Mon 8th December C3/C6
• Come Dine with me Experience - Fri 12th December
• Christmas Activities Day P3-6 - Mon 15th December
• Cinderella Pantomime for KS3 and C11 - Tue 16th December

Best wishes Mr A Moloney, Headteacher

Key information and Dates for your Diary

Key Info

Zones of Regulation - Parent Course

Our Zones of Regulation, online course for Parents and Carers is starting again this week with Module 5. The online course will run over ten weeks and each short module can be accessed via our website: Training for parents & carers. This course will introduce to you the ten concepts of the Zones of Regulation. The aim is to encourage the consistent use of language at school and at home to help regulate your child/young person's emotions and behaviours. I will set activities for you to do at home and introduce some strategies for you to use. If you would like some more information about this course, please contact the school office.

- Miss M Rodgers, Assistant Headteacher

Shoebox appeal

Last chance for our Shoebox Appeal! There's still time to spread joy to children worldwide! Send in your individual items or completed shoeboxes by Monday 10th November. Your generosity makes such a difference in creating smiles across the globe! The outpouring of kindness from our school community has been absolutely heartwarming. Nothing beats knowing we're making a child's day brighter together! Thanks for your amazing support! Mrs Murphy

Allergies

Please be aware that we have a number of pupils in school with severe nut allergies. To reduce the risk of exposure for these young people, we aim to keep the school nut free. In order to support us with this we kindly ask that you:

• Do not give children nuts or nut products in their packed lunches.
• Do not give nuts, nut products or snacks/bars containing nuts for break time snacks.
• Do not send cakes or food items, containing nuts, in to school for birthday celebrations, cake sales or events.

Thank you for your support.

Lunches

Week commencing 17th November 2025:

Thank you

Stars of The Week

• Class 1 Mrs Jordan - Zakary - For his constant positivity around school.
• Class 2 Miss Walsh - Tyler - For working hard independently in Maths.
• Class 3 Mr Healey - Quinn - For displaying a consistently mature attitude and helping out in class.
• Class 4 Mrs Garfin - Ayla - For representing the school in Chaplaincy and being a good friend.
• Class 5 Mr Whelan - Kian - For being an always pupil.
• Class 6 Miss Shaw - Aidan - For coping really well with lots of changes.
• Class 7 Miss Graham - Jack - For having a really settled week and a great attitude towards staff.
• Class 8 Mrs Wood - Rhys - For having a great week, trying his best, showing great maturity and empathy towards his peers.
• Class 9 Mr Donovan - Will - For his unprompted efforts in keeping our community clean and tidy.
• Class 10 Mr Wood - Jon-Paul - For having a sensible week, making right choices and being positive towards his peers.
• Class 11 Miss Sherwin - Arshvin - For engaging in lessons and giving great answers.
• Class 12 Miss Lord - Daniel - For offering to read the Saint of The Day prayer every morning, his kind presence and his respectful tone.
• Class 13 Mr Kanakides - Justin - For having a great first week back.
• Class 14 Miss Wilkinson - Megan - For being elected for the School Council for C14 and has started her own art club for Post-16.

Employee of The Week

Welcome to our school.

Introducing Igor, Class 2

What do you like most about Saint John Vianney? At break and lunchtimes I love to play football, I play with the older children. It’s good to keep fit. I also really enjoy my maths lessons, because I can work a bit more independently. What are you looking forwards to at SJV? I want to make new friends and meeting new teachers. I can’t wait to make pizzas in food technology lessons. I can’t wait to drive a car! How could SJV improve? If I could go on another residential. I went Children’s Adventure Farm and I enjoyed sleeping over and playing on the bouncy castle. I am looking forwards to going to Ghyll Head with Key Stage 3 in March.

Highlights of the Week

Our Catholic School

Our prayer focus in SJV this week:

'Remember the past with gratitude, live the present with enthusiasm and look forward to the future with confidence'

– Pope John Paul II

What a wonderful start to our week at SJV! We were honoured to receive the Anchor of Hope from Our Lady’s, Moss Side. Our Lead Chaplains warmly welcomed our visitors as we took part in this special moment. The Anchor of Hope in the Salford Diocese represents the theme of hope during the Jubilee Year 2025, which forms part of the Year of Mercy. This initiative encourages schools across the diocese to make hope a central focus in the curriculum and daily life, reflecting the uplifting message shared by the church. As the Anchor travels through the Diocese, it serves as a reminder of the Christian virtue of hope, emphasising that no matter the challenges faced, there is always a resolution to be found. Each class at SJV had the opportunity to spend time with the Anchor, taking part in reflection and prayer.

Mrs Garfin

Mrs Garfin

Poetry Corner

Remembrance and War Poetry at SJV This week at St John Vianney School our school community has been taking time to reflect on the bravery, sacrifice, and hope shown by those who have served in times of conflict. Assemblies and class activities have centred on the theme of remembrance, encouraging pupils to think deeply about the impact of war and the importance of peace.

We thought it would be fitting to share a poem by Second World War poet Keith Douglas. Douglas sadly lost his life in 1945 at the age of only 24, however, he left behind a legacy of some of the most beautiful poetry ever written, including this piece read and explained so wonderfully here by Clive James.

This powerful week in school has inspired a new beautiful piece of writing by one of our amazing post 16 pupils Megan, and we are proud to share her remembrance poem with you below. As a school we have a history of pupils writing war poetry with many featuring in our school poetry anthology Salute The Sun. We are proud of our pupils for engaging so thoughtfully with this important topic, their creativity and empathy shines through in every line of poetry they have written. Together, we remember, and through their words, we keep those memories alive.

Oliver Lomax

Useful Information

Winter Coat Appeal

This year we are supporting 'The Wellspring Charity for Homeless'. The Wellspring charity supports people that are homeless or at risk of losing their home. We are asking for your support by donating any unwanted adult winter coats. If you have any coats that are still in good condition, but no longer needed, please consider donating them to help others stay warm this winter. Please send your unwanted coats into school by December 5th and we will collect them at School and then pass them through to the Charity before Christmas. Your generosity will make a real difference to those facing hardship in our community. We appreciate your kindness and support in making this initiative a success. To find our more information regarding the charity click here.

- Mrs J Griffin, Family Liaison Officer, Deputy Safeguarding Lead.

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