St Edmunds News
Week beginning 11.09.23 - 15.09.23
Headteacher's Welcome
Dear Parents and Carers,
I am delighted to bring to you our new look weekly newsletter, which will keep you up to date with all of the latest information, news and events taking place at St Edmund's.
Firstly, I would like to say a warm welcome to the start of the new academic year to you and your families and a very warm welcome to all of the new families joining us this year. I hope the summer holidays have provided opportunities to rest, have fun and spend precious time with friends and family. It is typical that the heatwave came not during the summer holidays but just as we returned to school!
It was lovely to welcome all the children back to school after the summer holidays. Looking at the school community together again and looking so smart, with so many smiling and enthusiastic faces, was really inspiring for us all to see. It has been such a positive start to the school year, with the children excitedly reconnecting with their friends and settling back beautifully into the routines and expectations of school and their new teachers.
Our vision at the school is to ensure that the needs of all our children are met in all areas of school life and that each child is given a wealth of experience and opportunities. This, in turn, will guarantee that they leave at the end of Year 6 feeling extremely confident, responsible and competent members of society - ready for the next step on their educational journey. True excellence happens in schools when all concerned want to challenge themselves, take initiative and grow because they are inspired, excited and motivated. I firmly believe in celebrating success and making sure everyone knows they are loved by God. Here at St Edmund’s, we have a wonderful staff who have a passion and drive to ensure that this happens at this school.
My overall goal as Headteacher is simple – to ensure that each and every child, in Christ’s image, develops their full potential to become the very best that they can be. Finally, we look forward to working in partnership with you to ensure the very best outcomes for your children. Our door is always open so please don't hesitate to get in touch if you have a question or concern however small.
I look forward to seeing you over the coming days and weeks and working closely with you at St Edmund’s.
Yours sincerely,
Mr D Abrahams
News
Staffing
The new staff have settled in brilliantly and have embraced this spiritual ethos, as well as already demonstrating the highest expectations of behaviour and standards of education. We are sure that Mrs Fadahunsi, Mr McCarthy, Mr Takyi-Addo will continue to grow into invaluable teachers at St Edmund’s and I am sure you will welcome them in your own time. We also welcome Mrs Begum who is our student teacher working in Year 2 this year – I am sure she will be welcomed by everyone in the St Edmund’s community.
We also welcome Mrs Berry who will teach R1 on a Friday. May I also welcome back Mr Johnson, who continues as our teacher in Class 3.2 and Mrs Johnson, who started in Year 1 last year and continues to teach Class 1.1
I would also like to remind you of some changes in staffing structure. In the absence of Mr Kenny, Ms Graves has stepped up to take over as Acting Deputy Head and Miss Osborne has replaced Miss Lovett as our Early Years and Foundation Stage Leader. We wish both the best of luck in their new roles.
We are sad to be saying goodbye to Mr 'Coach' Regis. Mr Regis has been a very popular member of staff for our children due to his lunchtime coaching role and will be missed by staff and children alike.
New Timings:
I would like to express my thanks to you all for your patience, understanding and co-operation with regards the new drop-off and pick-up times. The new routines seem to be running smoothly after a few days embedding time. May I take this opportunity to remind you that this is in line with the new DfE expectations that children should be in school for 6.5 hours. The children are therefore benefitting of more learning time each day.
A reminder that gates open in the morning at 8.40am and close at 8.50am, when the register is taken. Children arriving after this time will be marked late.
The end of the day is now 3.20pm. The gates will open shortly before this and close again at 3.30pm.
Secondary Transfer Information:
If you have a child in Year 6, it is the time of year when you need to start making decisions about where they go to secondary school. You will have received an email with all of the information you need about schools' open evenings and deadlines as well as a hard copy of Enfield Council's 'Moving Onto Secondary School' booklet. Please ensure that you read through all of the available information so that you are not left disappointed with your child's placement. The deadline for all applications is 31st October.
Please visit www.eadmissions.org.uk and www.enfield.gov.uk/admissions for more information.
A Polite Reminder
Please be mindful of where you park your car at drop off and pick up times. You should not be parking on any zig-zags, bus stops/lanes or yellow lines. These rules are put in place for the safety of everyone, including our children.
Students of the Week
Class 1.1: Freya - For following instructions well in Maths
Class 1.2: Natalie - For giving excellent answers during carpet time.
Class 2.1: Stephanie - For her inspiring suggestions on how to take care of Gods creation.
Class 2.2: Eliana - for being a star talker in maths.
Class 3.1: Patrick - For having an amazing start at his new school.
Class 3.2: Nathaniel - For giving excellent responses during cold calling
Class 4.1: Chelsea - For always showing respect and a fantastic work ethic.
Class 4.2: Anuoluwa - For working hard all week and showing a great attitudes towards her learning.
Class 5.1: Ohemaa - for her contribution and effort in her writing.
Class 5.2: Saint Victoria For making a stellar start to this school year! You have worked amazingly this week! A good start is half the work! Well Done
Class 6.1: Anita - for demostrating great leaning and showing a clear understanding of how we can see Gods power, love, creativity and glory through His creations.
Class 6.2: Erni-Wayne - for being such a good role model and showing a sense of maturity in class.
Catholic Life
Once again, the academic year will follow the three words which make up our school motto - 'Love, Care, Share'. In order to bring the motto to life, I have divided its three words into the three terms of the school year. Therefore, our assemblies contribute towards the focus of the term, which can be seen in the diagram below. As you can see, this term is dedicated to ‘Love’ with the first half term focusing on 'Loving God's World' (which links to the Catholic Social Teaching theme of Care for Creation).
Catholic Social Teaching
This year, St Edmund's are raising the profile of Catholic Social Teaching. According to CAFOD, Catholic social teaching (CST) is rooted in Scripture, formed by the wisdom of Church leaders, and influenced by grassroots movements. It is our moral compass, guiding us on how to live out our faith in the world. Our faith calls us to love God and to love our neighbours in every situation, especially our sisters and brothers living in poverty. Following in the footsteps of Christ, we hope to make present in our unjust and broken world, the justice, love and peace of God.
At school, we follow the Rooted in Love programme and we will dedicate the first lesson every half term and an assembly towards the Catholic Social Teaching theme. You can see these themes below.
As you can see, the current theme this half term is Care for Creation. You can read more about this on our website on https://www.st-edmunds.enfield.sch.uk/page/?title=Catholic+Social+Teaching&pid=111
Attendance
Whole School Target: 95%
Last Week: 93.5%
This Term: 92.22%
Class 1.1: 99.1%
Class 1.2: 93.61%
Class 2.1: 89.66%
Class 2.2: 93.03%
Class 3.1: 92.63%
Class 3.2: 91.96%
Class 4.1: 91.46%
Class 4.2: 93.4%
Class 5.1: 90.87%
Class 5.2: 94.71%
Class 6.1: 93.13%
Class 6.2: 98.21%
NO NUTS OR SEEDS
Please remember we are a NO NUT SCHOOL. This is also extended to seeds. Some members of our school community have severe allergies to nuts and seeds, and food products containing them.
Your child must not bring in any products containing nuts and seeds as a snack or as part of their packed lunch. This includes seeded bread, hummus (which contains sesame), pesto (which contains pine nuts), peanut butter and chocolate spread (which often contains nuts).
Please see below, the new school dinner menu which will rotate over three weeks for the remainder of the term.
Please remind your children of the importance of eating their lunch: mainly to ensure that they are nourished and energised for their afternoon of learning but also to teach them the importance of not wasting food.
St Edmunds AUTUMN WINTER 23-24 - STIR Primary.pptx Halal.pptx.pdf
St Edmund's Way Certificate
Last year, we launched a special certificate that can be awarded to both children and staff if they show that they are truly living ‘The St Edmund’s Way’ by going above and beyond to show they are living out our motto and displaying selflessness, love and care for others.
The winner of this week's certificate is Hanna in class 4.2. Hanna won the award for being exceptionally kind to a new child in her class - she even got her a gift to make her feel welcome! But more importantly, she has been kind and caring and has played with her to ensure that she is happy in her new school.
Safeguarding
Each week, we will share a guide from National Online Safety, which will give you advice about how you can keep your children safe online at home. This week, it is all about the dangers and implications of sharing photos online.
We rescue good, surplus food from the food industry that cannot be sold and would otherwise go to waste. This is high-quality and nutritious, including a high proportion of fresh fruit and vegetables, baked goods, salads, meat and fish. We collect or receive food from over 539 suppliers, including supermarkets, wholesalers, farms, restaurants and delis.
We then sort and then deliver this food to almost 1000 front-line charities, primary schools and holiday programmes in London. That way, food that would have gone to waste is reaching vulnerable people, homeless, people with mental health or those who simply cannot afford to buy regular, healthy food.
St Edmund's have a delivery every Tuesday. Food will be available at the end of the school day under the KS1 shelter. We ask that you take a small amount each so in these difficult financial times all our families are able to benefit.
Photography Competition Time
In line with our Catholic Social Teaching theme of Care for Creation, we are asking all children across the school to send in photos of God's creations. We have been teaching the children the meaning of the word 'awe' - something they see that makes them go 'Wow!' Children can send in photos that they may have already taken or we encourage you to take some over the coming weeks. The best entries will be put up on display and the top 3 winners will receive a special prize. Please see below some examples from our staff.
