Welcome to our St Mary's Weekly Newsletter!
Let us Pray- Gweddiwn
Fourth Sunday of Advent (Year C)
Peace- Heddwch
My usual very special Christmas List to share with your families this Christmas.
God gave us the most precious gift of His Son at Christmas. Let us all be a gift to each other and share time, care, love, support with each other and with those in need.
On behalf of all the staff, heartfelt thanks to all families for your kind wishes, cards and Christmas gifts. As I often say, we are all very blessed to work with such wonderful children and their families, and we look forward to continuing to build our community and successful partnership into the new year 2025. I also extend grateful thanks to our governing body and Friends' committee whose commitment and dedication to our school is also very much appreciated. Nadolig Llawen a Blwyddyn Newydd dda i chi i gyd! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all! Take care, have a restful, peaceful and joyful break with your families and our thoughts go out to those members of our families who are sick, a long way away or who have lost loved ones this year. Our prayers to you all. God bless.
Special Prayers
Whole School Mass during Advent-The Annunciation of Our Lady-
Today, Mass was celebrated by Fr Nicholas and Deacon Michael in school. The introduction was led by our Year 4 children, the reading and psalm by Year 6s, the Alleluia by Year 5s, the prayers of intercession by Years 3 and 4 and the offertory procession by Foundation Phase children. As always, it was a beautiful Mass during which, all children respectfully participated in prayer, reflection and song. Da iawn pawb. A wonderful way to end a busy term and prepare for the birthday of Our Lord Jesus on Christmas day.
Early Years' and Years 3 & 4 Christingle Services
Well done to our children for their wonderful participation in both the Early Years and Years 3 & 4 Christingle services. It was lovely to welcome families into school for such beautiful celebrations.
Early Years Travelling Crib
Beautiful photos of the class travelling cribs visiting our children's homes.
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Masses during Christmas in the local area
Our Lady of Sorrows/ St Mary's Cathedral Masses
Christ the King Church, Llay Masses
Tuesday 24th December Christmas Vigil Mass at 6pm (Early 'Mid-night Mass)
Wednesday 25th December Christmas Day Mass- 10am
St Anne's/ Overton Parish Masses
St Richard Gwyn Parish- Ruabon, Chirk, Llangollen Masses
Tuesday 24th December- 6pm Christmas Vigil Mass (Carols from 17:30)
Wednesday 25th December- 9am- Chirk and 11am in Llangollen
Carol Service
School Holidays
Please note- we break up for Christmas today on Friday 20th December and return to school on Tuesday 7th January 2024.
Tocyn Enfys Draw
Congratulations to Vanessa and Elliot!
Christmas Concert Links
A big thanks you to Mr Murray once again for filming the concerts and creating videos for each year group. Links will hopefully be sent via Seesaw this weekend. Diolch.
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- 97.3%
Dosbarth Palodau- 85.7% Dosbarth Parotiaid- 88.6%- Dosbarth Pengwiniad-91.3%- Dosbarth Robin Goch- 97.3% Dosbarth Tylluanod- 95.7% Dosbarth Dryw-80%
Key Stage 2 winners this week are :-
Dosbarth Alyn with 96.3%
Dosbarth Clywedog-92.1% Dosbarth Conwy- 92.5% Dosbarth Alyn-96.3% Dosbarth Gwenfro-90.9% Dosbarth Dyfrdwy- 93.3% Dosbarth Gwaun- 95.3%
WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE TARGET- 96%
THIS WEEK'S WHOLE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE - 92.1%-a lot of illness again but a slight improvement on last week
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)
Nursery & Reception- Susie went to the park, Eliah and Anna Maria went to a Christmas party, Finley saw Fr Christmas on a train, Cora is going on the Polar Express, Hephzibah went to the Christmas markets, Harrison walked up a mountain with his mum and dad, Anwaar went to a party and Maja went to see Santa. Eliza performed in her first panto show Peter Pan at the William Aston Hall, Samatha went to the Christmas market and Sienna went to the fair.
Years 1 & 2-Lily M has moved house, Antoni has passes green stripe in taekwondo, Daniel has been to a pantomime in Grove Park theatre, Hunter has been on the Polar Express, Noah went on a boat on Alderford Lake and met Father Christmas, Mia went to gymnastics, Mateen met Parthiv whilst shopping, Oliver held a lizard and a snake, Michael's grandma is picking him up from school, Elliot has a big spider, Nathan is going on holiday to Ghana, Freya watched Jasmine in a panto, Kiki's mum bought her an elf and they were doing cheeky things, Yemi is going to visit his grandma in Ghana, Jacob saw Santa, Sasha is leaving early to go to Ukraine and Isabella went to watch her ballet show. Lucja went too and saw Santa, Lennon went to Ireland and is going karting soon, Nelly saw a cafe called 'Nelly!' and Alice knows the Lemon Tree is by her Nain and taid's house. Abigail went to the lanterns in Chester Zoo, Zayden is going to Tunisia, Zofia has a new room, Lucja had a party at Banana Ben's and Elsa was there. Willow went on a Santa train and watched the Snowman in Chester, Luka, Sammy, Harri & Alfie had breakfast with Santa. Luka B got his Level 2 swimming badge and now moves onto stage 3!
Years 3 &4-Akain has been busy making gingerbread men for Christmas Eve, Clara, Benj, Esmond, Franek, George, Julian and Paulina visited the Christmas market on Belle Vue Park, George is going to Round the Twist for the Christmas treat with Cubs, Andy's football team and a win over the weekend, Benj enjoyed celebrating his Gran's 70th birthday with a trip to the pantomime, Logan celebrated his nanny's heavenly birthday, Florence performed in Peter Pan over the weekend, Arthur is going to Portugal for Christmas and Tony went to see Peter Pan. Dorian has got a new Nintendo Switch, Finn has been to a birthday party yesterday, Georgie's dad has a new house, Oyintaena and Hanna have a yellow belt in taekwondo, Nathan is starting boxing and Joshua has been to Liverpool. Julian and Zion have their new belt results this week, Lauren went to Chester Christmas markets, Melvin D is going to Andy's birthday party, Zuzanna has new glasses, Melvin O's mum is getting anew bed, Ariana did her taekwondo grading, Liliana and Florence performed in Peter Pan, Kordian's sister is having a party and Martim is going to Round the Twist. Finn went to watch Dick Whittington at the Little Theatre. Dylan R yr 4 did his first fun gala in swim club and their team came 2nd and Nicolas has attained his blue belt and Nazif his red stripe belt in taekwondo.
Year 5 & 6-Lea went to London on the weekend, Rozalia played in her orchestra concert and performed a solo, Cody is going away tomorrow, Daniels' cousin is turning 18, Lois is getting a dog, Grace has a Christmas fun swimming gala (her first), Isabella is going to Alton Towers and Aiden has moved house and his sister is coming to visit.
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)
Thank you for your support and understanding.
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Credits:
Created with images by Kara - "Two candles lit in advent wreath for second week of advent with pillar candles on dark wood" • Neuroshock - "Orange Christingle is a symbolic object used in the Advent, Christmas and Epiphany services of many Christian denominations" • pushish images - "Blue sky and rainbow" • phonlamaiphoto - "Gold star trophy" • Maya Kruchancova - "cupcake with sparkler on old wooden background" • Irina Schmidt - "Adoralbe little toddler girl with rainbow and heart painted with colorful window color during pandemic coronavirus quarantine. Child painting rainbows around the world with the words Let's all be well"