Newsletter 2

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As we approach the end of this half term, I'd like to thank staff for their hard work and dedication and our families for their continued support. Welcome to our new families across all of our schools.

I was delighted to see that our first newsletter, issued in July, was read over 900 times within the Trust community.

In this newsletter I'll be sharing how we are supporting our schools with some new initiatives, in particular the work with Early Excellence across our Early Years settings. You'll also hear about some exciting events and activities taking place in each of our seven schools.

Best wishes,

Nuala Cashell

Catholic Senior Executive Lead

Our Mission is for all pupils to grow in God’s love and have the opportunity to develop their full potential within excellent Catholic schools, where collaboration and aspiration are promoted.

We welcome children of all faiths and none. We encourage cultural diversity, celebrate the special qualities of each of our schools and recognise that growth is essential for sustainability.

Our decision making is driven by what is best for our children.

To celebrate the start of the new academic year, staff from all seven of our schools were invited to join us for Mass at St Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Stratford.

Congratulations to St Michael's on achieving a 'Good' judgement in their Catholic School Inspection at the end of September. In addition to Ofsted inspections, our schools are inspected on behalf of the Bishop of Brentwood and the inspection report highlighted what the school does well.

• St Michael’s is a welcoming school where staff, pupils and families feel valued and there is a strong sense of community and inclusivity.
• Staff provide the highest level of care for all pupils and are excellent role models embodying their mission statement.
• Pupils clearly articulate the St Michael’s Way and endeavour to live out its mission.
• There is a flourishing partnership between the school and the local parish.
• Pupils’ religious literacy is well developed.

We are so lucky to have our own on-site OLOG IT team. You may have seen them in your school, remember to look out for the OLOG logo!

We appreciate their support in keeping our vital IT infrastructure working across all of our schools and we have recently increased the number of devices that are available for teacher and pupil use. The team are also on hand to support our Digital Champion programme trainees over the next 12-18 months.

This Trust wide initiative aims to equip each of our schools' Science Leads with the knowledge, confidence, and expert support they need to transform the quality and profile of science education across their school, for all children.

Subject leaders who successfully complete the programme receive recognition through the accreditation of the Primary Science Quality Mark for their school.

Early Years is an extremely important stage in a child's development. We believe by offering high-quality practice and inspirational learning environments early years pupils will have the best start.

With this in mind, we have invested funding to create rich and meaningful learning opportunities, through continuous provision. We'll be sharing some images showing this in action in our next newsletter.

EYFS staff have embraced the training and we thank them for their enthusiasm and engagement.

Here are some images of our Headteachers enjoying their time with Early Years pupils before the summer break.

St Winefride's celebration of the World's Biggest Coffee Morning was a great success! The children really enjoyed wearing their pyjamas and drinking their hot chocolate with marshmallows. Thank you to the parents/carers who donated and helped to raise a fantastic £200 for Macmillan Cancer Support!

And thank you to the hard working staff on the day, we couldn't have done it without you!

The nursery children at St Michael's visited a fire station as a part of their 'People Who Help Us' topic. They were able to sit in the fire trucks and see how the fire hose works in an emergency. Thank you to the amazing parent volunteers that attended with us. We are sure there is a future firefighter amongst this group!

Year 6 pupils from St Joachim’s and St Helen’s attended a residential Science Camp near the Kent coast at the beginning of the new term.

This wonderful cross-curriculum experience provided the children with the opportunity to complete a range of science lessons which involved investigating habitats, learning about coastal erosion and beach combing. They also took on some traditional camping activities such as orienteering, Forest School and archery. They ventured out on fact finding walks to places like Deal where they had the opportunity to take part in some sea swimming.

On the final day they attended a prayer service to reflect on the whole week and the reasons behind it, before returning back to school via Howletts Wildlife Park where they further developed their understanding of animals and their habitats. The children enjoyed the camp for the science but also for the new friendships they formed with pupils from each school.

On the 4th October St Francis’ celebrated their feast day with Mass in the morning and enjoying special activities in school. The children explored various times and events in the life of St Francis’ and celebrated them through art.

After Mass the priests came in to school to share some ice lollies with the children and staff. It was their first Feast Day at our school and as the photo shows, they enjoyed it just as much as the pupils and staff do every year!

On Thursday the 10th of October pupils and staff celebrated World Mental Health day by wearing something yellow. Yellow because, ‘We Stand Brighter Together.’ Children chose to wear an item of yellow and took part in some short activities focusing on better mental health and well being.

Congratulations to St Antony’s Performing Arts Choir who won the National School Song Competition 2024 which took place in Hertfordshire in September. The choir was selected as one of the nine finalists from over a thousand entries from academies, state and private schools. They sang their hearts out to their original school song and they were delighted to take home the coveted trophy and gold medals.

October is the Catholic Church's month of Mary and the Rosary. A time to honour Mary and her protection of the Church.

Holy Mary, mother fair,

Filled with love for God,

Pray for us in all our needs.

Pray for us today.

Amen

Email: info@olog.org.uk
Website: www.olog.org.uk
Location: St. Helen's Catholic Primary School, Chargeable Lane, London E13 8DW
Phone: 020 4530 9232