Birthday Greetings

Happy birthday to all the children and staff who have had or who will be celebrating their birthdays this week and over the Easter Holiday.

Ben Robinson, Jenson Barnes, Henry Reynolds, Kiera Littlewood, Lauren Quartly, Vedh Jayakrishnan, Viyaan Jayakrishnan, Joseph Minshull, Mrs McCauley and Mrs Smith

 We hope you have had or will have a lovely day!

Thought for the week

In prayer and liturgy this week, our children have listened to the following reading:

The LORD hates liars, but is pleased with those who keep their word.

(Proverbs 12:22)

Morning start

Children are allowed on the playground from 8:30am each day and the school day begins at 8:45am. Staff arrive on the playground from around 8:40am and Mr Saunders or Mrs Riches will blow the whistle for children to line up.  We would respectfully ask parents not to hold up the children’s entry to school by talking with teachers.  Miss Rose will be on the playground if parents need to pass on messages.

Thank you for your understanding. We want the day to start as smoothly as possible and enable the children to maximise their learning time. 

Holy Week

This week, we have celebrated the holiest week in the Western Christian world. It began on Sunday with Palm Sunday, where we commemorate Jesus entering Jerusalem lauded by the people waving palms for the Messiah. On Thursday we celebrated Mass of The Lord’s supper, where Jesus instituted the priesthood and the Eucharist as we celebrate today. Here, he also washed his disciples’ feet as a model of servant leadership. On Friday we commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus, who saves us from our sins. On Saturday evening, we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, where the finality of death is overcome and is now a gateway to unity with God.

The Mass and service times for St Joseph’s, St Alban’s and Sacred Heart are available by following the link attached.

https://stjosephpenketh.co.uk/index.php/2026/03/23/newsletter-w-c-22nd-march/

If you are unable to attend church this Easter weekend, please see the videos below for a child appropriate liturgy for Easter Sunday. 

We wish all our families a blessed and joyful Easter. 

The Solemn Blessing from the Easter morning Mass

May almighty God bless you

through today's Easter Solemnity

and, in his compassion,

defend you from every assault of sin.

And may he, who restores you to eternal life

in the Resurrection of his Only Begotten,

endow you with the prize of immortality.

Now that the days of the Lord's Passion have drawn to a close,

may you who celebrate the gladness of the Paschal Feast

come with Christ's help, and exulting in spirit,

to those feasts that are celebrated in eternal joy.

And may the blessing of almighty God,

the Father, and the Son, † and the Holy Spirit,

come down on you and remain with you for ever.

Amen.

Age 4-7 Easter Liturgy

Age 7-11 Easter Liturgy

Summer Uniform

Please remember the children are to wear summer uniform on their return on Monday 20 April. 

Holy Communion Preparation 2 - Thursday, 23 April at 6pm  

There will be a Meeting for Holy Communicants in Church on Thursday, 23 April at 6pm.

Online Safety

Dear Parents and Carers,

At St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, we are committed to helping our pupils learn how to use technology and the internet safely and responsibly. As many children regularly use tablets, phones, gaming devices and computers at home, it is important that we work together to support their online safety.

While the internet offers many positive opportunities for learning, creativity and communication, it can also present risks for children. Pupils may sometimes come across inappropriate content, receive unkind messages, or be contacted by people they do not know through games or apps. Another growing concern is the inappropriate use of peer messaging groups, particularly on platforms such as WhatsApp. Sometimes children are added to group chats where unkind comments, arguments, inappropriate language, or sharing of images can occur. These situations can quickly escalate and may cause upset, misunderstandings, or conflict between pupils.

We kindly ask parents and carers to regularly check their child’s online activity and messaging apps. Please remind your child never to share personal information, images, or school details online, and to communicate kindly and respectfully with others. It is also important that children know to speak to a trusted adult immediately if something online makes them feel uncomfortable or worried.

Simple steps such as using parental controls, checking privacy settings, setting clear expectations for messaging, and keeping devices in shared family spaces can help children stay safer online.

By working together as a school community, we can help ensure our children enjoy the benefits of technology while learning how to make safe and responsible choices online.

Thank you for your continued support.

Alan Saunders

Free Online Safety Parent Workshop – Thursday 30th April - 7pm

Warrington Local Authority are totally committed to the digital safety and wellbeing of their students. As part of this, we are running a workshop dedicated to helping parents understand the risks their children face in their online lives and the practical things parents can do to help.

Please join us for this hour-long workshop in which Ruth Noble, Digital Safeguarding Education Specialist will provide you with lots of valuable insights and tools.

Including:

·         Information on the latest apps and games your child may have access to.

·         The harmful content your child may be exposed to.

·         How you can help your child to safely navigate online risk.

·         How to access our FREE Online Safety Hub with dedicated guidance for parents.

·         An introduction to a parental app that allows you to control what your child sees online if they are at risk, plus other important features.

We hope to see you there, please use the link to register for your free place Webinar Registration - Zoom

Mobile Telephones

Much has been said this week about children and young people’s use of mobile telephones in school.  Evidence does suggest that for many, they can become addictive and at least a distraction from the present moment with those around us.  If you are considering what to give up this Lent, a good option is to abstain from scrolling social media!

Some older children need their phone as they may walk home alone each day, and we understand they need to bring it to school in the morning. However, we must remind all that phones must be switched off when children arrive on the playground and must only be switched on again after school as they leave the site.  During the day, all phones are to be handed in to the teacher for safe keeping in the school office.  If parents need to pass a message to their child, this is to be done as always through the office. 

Thank you for your support. 

PE Days for Spring 2026 2nd half term 

Please see below the PE days for your child for this new term.   

EYFS CT - Friday

Y1 LH - Thursday and Friday

Y2 KS - Monday and Tuesday 

Y3 CF/KR - Tuesday and Thursday (Swimming Thursday)

Y4 KD - Tuesday and Thursday 

Y5/6 MW - Tuesday and Thursday

Y5/6 MR - Monday and Thursday

Y5/6 RT - Monday and Wednesday

Children are to wear their PE kits on these days.

If your child wears earrings, please ensure that you provide tape so the earrings can be covered for safety. 

Many thanks.

PFA Class WhatsApp Contacts 2025/26

To help us communicate with parents easier, volunteers have nominated themselves to be class contacts in WhatsApp groups on behalf of the PFA. Please note this is for PFA correspondence and questions only, any matters in relation to school should go through the normal channels.  They are as follows:

Reception - Louise Reynolds

Year 1 - Hannah Hughes

Year 2- Sally Lucas

Year 3- Amanda MacFarlane

Year 4- Maria Simpson

Year 5- (Mr. W) Liz Houghton

Year 5- (Mrs T) Stacy Larkin

Year 6 - Kate Leighton

Thank you.

 Your PFA

Happy Easter message from the PFA

Happy Easter to all the children and their families from the PFA! We hope you enjoy your Easter egg treat, kindly provided and funded by the PFA, with an additional contribution from the Penketh Support Group, and that you have a wonderful time celebrating.

Thank you for your ongoing support—enjoy the Easter break! 

Thank you.

Your PFA

Early Notes Music Lessons

Road Safety and Considerate Driving

Please be reminded that the school is in a residential area and obviously at the beginning and end of the school day, the pavements and roads will be busier. Please take extra care with road awareness and speed of driving.  The roads must be a safe place for all users.

Penketh Panthers

Dunky's Day Nursery Easter Half Term Holiday Club

Food Allergies

Please be reminded that some of our children suffer with severe allergic reactions to peanuts, nuts, lentils and peas.  If an anaphylactic reaction occurs we are trained to immediately use Jext pens or Epipens and call 999. 

Please do not use Nivea sun cream as it has almond oil in it and we have children with severe nut allergies.

Please do not send any items containing the above into school for your child’s lunch or snack.  This includes spreads like Nutella as it has hazelnut as an ingredient.

Thank you for your support, as always.

请注意，我们学校有些孩子对花生、坚果、扁豆和豌豆有严重的过敏反应。如果发生过敏反应，我们会立即使用Jext笔或Epipens并拨打999。

请勿使用妮维雅防晒霜，因为它含有杏仁油，而且我们学校也有一些孩子对坚果有严重的过敏反应。

请勿将任何含有上述成分的物品带入学校作为您孩子的午餐或零食。这包括像Nutella这样的涂抹酱，因为它含有榛子成分。

一如既往地感谢您的支持。