Dear Parents
I am conscious today that there are lots of questions relating to future school events, so let me start with those. These questions were discussed this morning with parents at Coffee and Conversation and there is also a Xavier letter from Ani Magill giving a wider perspective on the situation nationally – do please read those communications if you would like to understand more about the background to the decisions we have made. Please be assured that every decision we take at Cardinal Newman is made with the children’s interests front and centre; at the present time, we are above all concerned with keeping our school bubbles open and our children learning and socialising in school right to the end of term. Thank you for your support in this very difficult period.
School Events in brief with more details to be shared in due course:
Sports Day – Will go ahead for the children in their year group bubbles on 9th July. There will be no spectators onsite this year.
Move Up Day – Will go ahead for the children who are already in school. They will go to their new classroom with their new teacher but staff will social distance from the children where possible.
KS2 Trips – Were planned within the previous guidance and can go ahead as planned
Open Classrooms – Will not be able to go ahead due to the limit on indoor gatherings. These will be postponed until a Partners-in-Learning-style evening in the Autumn Term
Year 6 Mass and Leavers Events – These are all in the final week of term (week beginning July 19th) and could therefore possibly go ahead face to face. This will depend on the guidance at the time – if they don’t go ahead in person, they will be streamed for parents as previously.
Parent Association Events
There will be a mufti day in aid of the Parent Association on Friday 25th June and there are plans afoot for a “Colour Raffle” to boost funds further. More information can be found here. The Parent Association has been very generous in support of the school’s projects this year, including large donations for the IT Suite and for the Tiered Seating in the hall. If you are able to, I would encourage you to support their fundraising to enable similar projects to benefit our children in future years.
Governors
The Local Governing Committee at Cardinal Newman is recruiting for new Parent Governors. There will be a communication from the Chair of Governors on Monday asking for parents who are interested to come forward for election. Please take time over the weekend to consider whether the time could be right for you to support our school in this way. Governors meetings are once per half-term and governors have an important role in supporting and challenging the School Leadership Team to deliver the best possible outcomes for our community of Learners, Believers and Friends.
Parking
It is noticeable that there is an increase in cars coming down Arch Road, especially for morning clubs. Please keep the safety of our children front and foremost in mind and walk, cycle or scoot either from home or from a convenient car park. This is both good for our own children’s health and for the safety of others. Thank you for your support with this – we were doing so well!
Wishing you a wonderful (not too wet!) weekend.
All best wishes
Catherine Burnham
Headteacher
