School News and Head's Blog
Posted on: 13/10/2023Weekly News - Friday 13th October 2023
As we reach the end of a very busy first half term of the academic year, we are feeling very grateful to the whole St. Helen's College community and very proud of all that has been achieved so far! We wish you all a happy, restful half term.
Reception and Year 1 Harvest Assemblies
On Tuesday and Wednesday, Lower School classes helped us to reflect on the importance of gratitude and sharing.
Year 1 performed a super assembly on Tuesday, telling us about harvest time around the world. The children described how different cultures and countries celebrate and give thanks for the food they are able to produce and eat. We were also reminded of the importance of sharing with those less fortunate. The pupils sang with gusto and spoke individual lines with confidence. There was some wonderful dancing too!
The following day, our Owls and Kingfishers Reception classes presented their harvest assembly, themed around colours. Through song, choral verse and individual lines, the children explained how farmers use combine harvesters and other machinery to help grow, gather and prepare crops, before considering the 'rainbow' of produce we can eat. We remembered together that we are lucky to have plenty and to be able to help those who do not have enough.
After each performance, Reverend Ken Kingston told the children a short story to demonstrate how even the smallest contribution can make the biggest difference.
We would like to thank everyone who has contributed food for our harvest collections during this half term. As usual, the St. Helen's College community has been hugely generous in supporting those in need, of whom there are many in our local community. All donations are being distributed to people in Hillingdon.
3M Class Assembly
The 3M class assembly on Friday looked at all of the connections between people: in our immediate and extended families, in our school and wider community, and around the world. The children reminded us all how important it is to nurture and enjoy these connections, and how we can all make a difference to others' lives by being mindful of the world that connects us. They took us to Antarctica, the Sahara Desert and the Amazon Rainforest, educating us on how important it is to protect these endangered places. We were asked to remember that it is possible for every single person to make a difference and that no difference is too small, because 'the greatest threat to our planet is believing someone else will save it.' Well done, 3M. You spoke your lines with great confidence, projection and clarity and gave us all plenty to reflect upon.
Sports News
Tuesday saw our U11 girls' football team take part in a tournament at Radlett Prep alongside five other schools. The girls really enjoyed the experience and made the most of the opportunity to compete and develop their matchplay against some tough opposition. The team lost their first game 2-0 to Radlett Prep, won the second 1-0 against Monksmead, with Alexia C the goal scorer, lost 6-0 to Manor Lodge, lost 1-0 to Quainton Hall and lost 1-0 to Cowley Hill. This put the team fifth in the league table which meant a fifth/sixth place play-off against Monksmead. The girls were excited to put their boots back on for the final game and they had saved their best performance until last, winning 3-0 with goals from Eva J, Riya S and Alexia C. Thank you to the parents who came along, both for the amazing support and with the help in transporting the girls to and from the competition.
On Wednesday, the U11 boys' football team travelled to Manor Lodge to take part in a tournament. The team produced a mixed set of results, losing their first game 2-1, then winning 3-0, losing 2-0 and losing the last game 3-1. They finished fifth out of seven teams. This was good preparation for the team as the league season is starting very soon. At times the team played very well and they certainly have a strong foundation upon which to build. Many thanks to those who came along to support them.
The netball team was also in action on Wednesday with a home match against St. Bernadette's, their second league match of the season. It was an exciting game from start to finish, with the teams being very well matched.
Unfortunately St. Helen's College lost 3-4 to St. Bernadette’s, but the girls all played brilliantly and made improvements on their match last week. Nya was awarded player of the match for her fantastic interceptions throughout.
Congratulations to Hana H (Year 6) and her brother Samir H (an Old Helenian), who were recently runners up in their tennis club finals at Dukes Wood Tennis Club in Gerrards Cross. Hana entered the U10 mixed competition and Samir was in the U14 boys' competition. They were both beaten by county players but enjoyed the challenge.
News From The PA
Quiz night: Thank you to all of the parents and teachers who participated in Quiz Night. The event was a lot of fun with lots of new parents joining in. These events play a valuable role in fostering a sense of community and collaboration within the school. We appreciate everyone who attended.
Uniform Stall: The uniform stall will be held during the half term on Tuesday 24th October from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Upper School car park, via Parkway.
Christmas Party: The PA has organised two Christmas parties for St. Helen's College children on Sunday 26th November. Your child/children can attend either time slot together, despite being in different year groups. We are not holding parties for specific year groups on this occasion.
As spaces are limited, they will be provided on a first come, first served basis. Each party will consist of party food and soft drink, a disco and a gift from Father Christmas.
PARTY OPTIONS: Sunday 26 November 2023
PARTY 1: 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.
PARTY 2: 2 p.m. - 4 p.m.
Please complete your booking here: PA Christmas Party 2023 (google.com)
PRICES:
£15.00 per child
£5.00 per adult
PAYMENT
Please make payment of £15 per child and £5 per adult using the Child 1 Name and Class as your reference.
Please note that payment must be made within 24 hours and is only accepted by bank transfer to:
Account Name: SHC Parents Association
Bank: Natwest
Sort Code: 60-02-60
Account No: 10315152
VENUE:
Yiewsley and West Drayton Community Centre, 228 Harmondsworth Road, West Drayton UB7 9JL
PARKING FACILITIES:
Some parking available on site.
Please ensure that you include all the information on the form as requested and make payment within 24 hours of booking. BOOKINGS WILL BE OPEN UNTIL THURSDAY 16 NOVEMBER. Book early to avoid disappointment. If there are any queries, please email pa@sthelenscollege.com.
Parents' Evenings
It was good to see so many parents of our Lower School children at the second round of Ducklings, Nursery, Reception and Year 1 parents' evenings this week. We hope that you found the conversations useful. Please keep communicating with your child's class teacher regularly in order to support their progress.
Parents' Evenings for Years 2 to 6 will take place on:
Thursday 2nd November (4 p.m. to 7 p.m.)
Tuesday 7th November (5 p.m. to 8 p.m.)
To book appointment(s), please use the following link.
https://sthelens.schoolcloud.co.uk/
Road Safety And Sustainability
Gold Kitemark
We are delighted to report that St. Helen's College has once again been awarded a gold kite mark by Transport for London to reflect the school's excellent work concerning road safety and sustainability. As usual, our JTAs (Junior Travel Ambassadors) have been instrumental in gaining this accolade. This keen and responsible group of pupils meets regularly to come up with new and inventive ways to reduce pollution and congestion in the area, as well as to promote the safety of all road users. Well done all!
Hillingdon's Active Travel Movement
This year the Hillingdon STARS team are offering Hillingdon schools the chance to be involved with their Active Travel Movement 2023 campaign. By being part of the movement, school communities can participate in active travel activities, reduce car use, improve air quality and improve the overall physical and mental well-being of everyone involved. There has never been a more important time for the young minds of today to help shape the fate of our environment and travel behaviours for the future. Watch the 2-minute video to get a sense of what it's all about!
October Walk to School Month Competitions
The STARS Team will be running an October Walk to school month competition. There are different competitions for children up to Year 2 and children in Years 3 - 6. All entries must be handed into school by Tuesday 31st October. Winners will be announced and contacted in November. Winners will be chosen from each key stage and will have their design digitally recreated and framed as well as receiving an Amazon gift card!
EYFS/KS1 Active Travel Art Competition (Early Years and Years 1 & 2)
Children are asked to create a piece of art to show a safe and sustainable way to travel to school. This could be walking, scooting, cycling etc. They should show in their drawing how they keep safe when travelling to school actively.
KS2/KS3 Road Safety Invention Design Competition (Years 3 - 6)
Children are asked to come up with a new "Road Safety Invention Design" which could make roads safer. They should draw the design as well as explain how the road safety invention would work and how it makes roads safer.
Thames Valley Cavaliers - Free Tickets
Thames Valley Cavaliers will be playing a home match against Loughborough Riders this Saturday, starting at 7 p.m. at Uxbridge College. All St. Helen's College pupils are welcome to attend free of charge! You can find details here.
Music Spaces
We currently have spaces available for flute, trumpet/trombone and singing lessons for children in Years 2-6. Please use this Google Form to register interest. Please note that there are currently no spaces available for piano lessons; however, the form can be used to add your child's name to a waiting list for any instrument.
Upcoming Dates
The second half term promises to be as busy as the first, if not more so! Here is a reminder of upcoming dates/events for the first week back:
Monday 30th October - Year 5 pedestrian training (during school hours)
Monday 30th October - Year 5 and Year 6 netball v. Highgate (A)
Tuesday 31st October - Year 3 pedestrian training (during school hours)
Wednesday 1st November - Orchestra trip to Northwood College
Wednesday 1st November - Football match v. Laurel Lane (H)
Thursday 2nd November - PA coffee morning in Evans Hall (8.15 a.m.)
Thursday 2nd November - Year 2 - 6 parents' evenings (4 p.m. to 7 p.m.)
Friday 3rd November - 3B coffee morning/class assembly (8.15 a.m.)
Friday 3rd November - Nursery trip to The Play Train
Posted on: 6/10/2023Weekly News - Friday 6th October 2023
Year 3 Trip To St. Albans
On Monday, Year 3 had their first school trip of the year to St. Albans Cathedral. When they arrived the children met a Roman soldier before taking part in a mosaic making workshop and a drama workshop, where they acted out the life of St. Alban as they toured the cathedral.
IAPS Clay Art Workshop
Also on Monday, Mrs. Pruce had pleasure of hosting a Clay Workshop at St. Helen's College in her role as subject leader for IAPS. It was a fantastic day of sharing creativity with other art teachers. The course lead was Emma Collins, with whom we have had the pleasure of working previously here at St. Helen's College. The day began with exploring the different ways to make and shape different types of clay and then, in the afternoon, a sense of calm and quiet came over the room as the delegates became mindful of the activity and embraced the opportunity to be active artists themselves. Feedback from the delegates was superb.
Open Morning
On Tuesday morning, we welcomed many prospective new families to tour the school and meet current staff and children. Our Year 6 pupils did a wonderful job of showing new families around at Upper School and, as always, really impressed our visitors with their confidence and love for St. Helen's College, their studies and their extra-curricular activities.
Year 2 Stone Age Day
On Wednesday our Year 2 children enjoyed an immersive day of learning about the Stone Age. The day was a huge success. The children looked amazing in their Stone Age costumes and they enjoyed an action packed day of activities which included Stone Age Maths, Nature Collages, We Will Rock You Music, Cave Painting, Rock Painting, Food Tasting and Clay Faces. The day enriched their history learning and everyone had a Yabadabadoo time!
Netball Result
The Year 6 Netball Team played a great first netball match on Wednesday afternoon, finishing with a 3-2 home win. The team rotated through positions and showed great versatility. They went into the last quarter drawing 2-2 and kept calm, maintaining possession and securing a well deserved win.
Well done to all who played and congratulations to Sofia K, who was awarded player of the match by the opposing team's players and coach.
4B coffee morning/class assembly
On Friday, class 4B performed a super assembly, celebrating the fact that our school is turning one hundred years old this year. The children told us about school in the 1920s which seemed to be very strict! They showed us a traditional dance which children would have learnt at that time and gave us a taster of what life was like then, with no school kitchen, smart boards or cars to travel in. We thought about how we can learn from the past and how we do not know what the future will hold for us. The children were excited to tell the audience about their parents and older siblings who had attended St. Helen's College. The assembly ended with a rousing performance of our school song. Well done, 4B, on an enjoyable and informative performance!
Ducklings/Nursery/Reception parents' evenings
Thank you to all of the parents who joined us for the first Ducklings, Nursery and Reception parents' evenings of the year on Wednesday evening. It was lovely to see you all and we hope that you found the conversations about your children interesting and helpful. The next parents' evening for our Early Years classes will take place next week on Thursday 12th October.
Messages From The PA
Please mark your calendars for our upcoming uniform stall on October 24, 2023, during the half-term break. We have placed uniform donation bins outside the Upper and Lower School buildings. Please drop off any unwanted uniform there before the half-term holiday. Let's support one another, save on uniform costs, and promote sustainability!
Quiz Night at The White Bear!
Date: Wednesday, October 11th
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: The White Bear in Ruislip
Join us for an evening of fun, trivia, and friendly competition. Spaces are limited, so be sure to secure your spot by using the Google Form link: https://forms.gle/cPnxNAbvxb7kX3oDA.
If you would like to join but do not have a team, please let your class rep know via Class List and we will do our best to link you in to a team.
Looking forward to seeing you there!
Staff News
Congratulations to Mrs. Smith, who discovered today that she has been awarded a distinction for her MA!
Class List
The Parents' Association have adopted the Class List app for all of their communications. If you have not already downloaded Class List and signed up, please do so as soon as possible so that you do not miss out on communications from the PA about events and more. Parents are encouraged to use Class List to communicate with parent class groups and/or with other parents from across the school.
Next Week
4B swimming all week
Tuesday 10th October - Year 1 coffee morning and Harvest assembly (8.15 a.m.)
Tuesday 10th October - U11 girls' football tournament at Radlett Prep School (1.00 p.m.)
Wednesday 11th October - U11 boys' football tournament at Manor Lodge School (1.00 p.m.)
Wednesday 11th October - Y6 netball match v. St. Bernadette's (3.45 p.m.) - home
Wednesday 11th October - PA Quiz Night at The White Bear, Ruislip (7.00 p.m.)
Thursday 12th October - Ducklings, Nursery and Reception parents' evenings at Lower School (5.00 p.m. - 8.00 p.m.)
Friday 13th October - 3M coffee morning/class assembly (8.15 a.m.)
Term Dates 2024-2025
The term dates for the academic year 2024-2025 have now been published to the school website and are available here.
BBC 500 Words Competition
500 Words, the UK’s most successful children’s writing competition, has now opened for submissions and will run until Friday 10th November. Children of all abilities are encouraged to use their creativity and imagination to write a story they would love to read.
You can find out more on the BBC website here, or on the information poster. Good luck submitting your entries - do please let us know of any successes as not only are there excellent individual prizes to be won (including going to Buckingham Palace and being on The One Show), but the school also stands to win a range of books for any successful entries!
Half Term Chess Camp
Uxbridge Chess Club are running a half term camp which might be of interest to those looking to improve their chess skills and have fun at the same time. Full details are here.
Football Development Sessions For Girls
Ickenham Youth FC are running some mini development sessions for girls on Saturday mornings. If you have a daughter in Reception to Year 3 who might be interested in joining in, you can find details here.
Posted on: 29/09/2023Weekly News - Friday 29th September 2023
Harvest Festival
Thank you to those parents who joined us for our Upper School Harvest Festival service at All Saints Church this morning. We hope that you enjoyed reflecting on this important time of year along with us. Our Year 5 pupils and Year 6 Pupil Leadership Team led the readings beautifully and we were delighted to hear from the Senior and Junior Choirs, as well as the Orchestra, so early in the year!
Many, many thanks to all those who sent in donations of food. These will be distributed by the Salvation Army to those in need in Hillingdon.
Lower School Harvest Assemblies will take place on Tuesday 10th October (Year 1) and Wednesday 11th October (Reception).
Month End Music Recital
Our first Month End Music Recital of the year was extremely well-attended today and it was wonderful to see so many of our young performers step up to show off their musical talents and hard work. Well done to all those who performed!
A Week Of Trips And Visits
It has been a busy week of trips, visits and workshops across the school.
On Monday, the Year 4 classes enjoyed an Ancient Greek Day to enhance their history learning. In the morning they met someone who was trying to become a time traveller and had to help her to answer some different challenges about Ancient Greece. The pupils 'travelled' with her, using laughter to make the time travel happen. They then met Jocasta, an Athenian noblewoman, and were treated to a great insight into her life. In the afternoon the children took part in workshops and learnt about what it would be like to live in Jocasta's house, where there were separate rooms for the males and females to relax and where she had slaves to do everything for her. It was an interesting and exciting day for Year 4.
On Wednesday, Year 6 visited Henry Moore's studio and gardens to explore some fascinating artwork by the war artist. This links to their studies in history where they are looking at the Second World War. In small groups, the pupils were taken on a tour of the fields of sculptures by well informed volunteer guides. The guides were impressed by how much knowledge the children retained about Moore's life and works. The statues are quite breathtaking and the children were impressed by their size. The afternoon gave the opportunity to sketch and take photographs of his work. We look forward to seeing the creations Year 6 will make based on Henry Moore's work over the coming weeks.
Also on Wednesday, Year 5 enjoyed a fabulous day at Hampton Court Palace, enriching their learning about The Tudors. The weather stayed dry, the children were full of enthusiasm and the staff were impressed with their behaviour. The pupils explored the outside grounds, the chapel and the impressive range of kitchens and had a tour of the Tudor state apartments. The children took part in a workshop with a costumed presenter about Elizabethan exploration and world trade. They thought about the different goods that were valuable at the time, being particularly amazed that the potato was such a prized possession! As part of this session, the children pitted themselves against the teachers in a race to be first to reach South America.
On Thursday, our Kingfishers and Owls Reception classes had a wonderful time at Odds Farm Park. It was fun to learn lots of information about how a real farm works and there were lots of opportunities to see and touch different breeds of sheep and goats, as well as a lovely Jersey cow named Posey. The children found it very interesting to see first hand how the farmer milks a cow and there was even time to meet some fluffy rabbits. The day ended with an exciting and rather bumpy tractor ride across the field. What a lovely time Reception had down on the farm.
Thursday also saw the Year 2 classes take a trip to the Chiltern Open Air Museum, where they learnt many interesting facts about the Stone Age. They are now very much looking forward to their Stone Age Day here at school next Wednesday and we will share photographs of their stone age activities in due course!
PA Quiz Night
The Parents' Association will be hosting a quiz night on Wednesday 11th October at The White Bear in Ruislip. These are always popular occasions so please organise your team (4-6 people) and book your table soon! Details are here and the link for ticket bookings is being sent out by the PA.
Individual Music Lessons
There are spaces available for woodwind, brass and singing lessons for children in Years 2-6. Please use this Google Form to register interest.
Co-Curricular Activities
We have a few spaces left in Upper School co-curricular clubs, as follows.
Year 2/3 Recorder Club - Monday lunchtimes
Year 4/5/6 Spanish Club - after school
If your child is interested in joining one of these clubs, please contact Mr. Harrington at lharrington@sthelenscollege.com.
Karate Success
Very well done to the St. Helen's College pupils who competed in the International Banzai Cup Championship in Berlin last weekend. Grace O'H, Daynan C, Rania Q, Avleen P and Nayia L put in outstanding efforts. They all delivered solid performances and in some cases, narrowly missed out on podium finishes.
Freya K secured a bronze medal in her kata event and a silver medal in her kumite event, while Aleya S clinched the gold medal in her kumite event. Both girls deserve special congratulations for their inspiring efforts!
From The PA: Christmas Card Project Reminder For Upper School Parents
Last week, forms and artwork sheets were distributed to each class for the children to complete their drawings at home. Please check with your child if they have received their materials.
Artistic guidelines: we encourage all children to create bright and bold drawings for the Christmas cards as these tend to work best. As a friendly reminder, please do not use collage or glitter on the artwork sheets.
Artwork submission deadline: to ensure the project's success and timely production, all completed artwork must be returned to the Upper School office by Tuesday, October 3, 2023.
Replacement forms: if you find that you need a replacement form, please do not hesitate to contact the Upper School office.
The artwork will be returned to the company and uploaded onto a portal. The PA will share login details for the portal so that you can go online, view your child's artwork and place an order.
Artwork for Lower School is being completed at school.
Holiday Club - Half Term
Holiday Club bookings for half term will open at 4 p.m. today. Please log in to your SchoolsBuddy account to make your bookings. Please note that there will no longer be in-house catering for Holiday Club; parents will need to send snacks and lunches with children. Places must be booked in advance by Friday 13th October to enable us to arrange staffing in advance.
Next Week
4T swimming all week
Monday 2nd October - Year 3 trip to St. Albans
Tuesday 3rd October - School At Work Open Morning
Wednesday 4th October - Year 2 Stone Age Day
Wednesday 4th October - Nursery coffee morning in Lower School Hall (8.15 a.m.)
Wednesday 4th October - Ducklings, Nursery and Reception parents' evenings (all at Lower School)
Thursday 5th October - Parents' Association meeting in Evans Hall (7.00 p.m.)
Friday 6th October - 4B coffee morning/class assembly (8.15 a.m.)
Toddler Play Sessions
Mr. Harrington's wife runs 'Mini Me Town' play sessions for children up to the age of six, which encourage exploration through play. She will be running a session at Lower School on Saturday 7th October from 10.30 - 11.30 a.m. If you are interested in attending with your child to encourage their imaginative play and meet other parents and children, you can visit the Mini Me Town website for further details and to book: www.minimetown.co.uk. Sessions are usually £9 each, but there is an introductory offer of £6 for the first session. Places are limited so please book early.
Posted on: 22/09/2023Weekly News - Friday 22nd September 2023
STEAM Day
Today we have all enjoyed a very busy and productive STEAM Day.
Lower School and Ducklings certainly steamed into the day with enthusiasm that knew no bounds! The day has been full of activities.
Ducklings enjoyed fizzing bath bombs and were amazed by the flight of their rockets.
At Lower School, Nursery enjoyed bubble making, designing a giant marble run and creating a wall out of shaving foam. Reception children shot their own rocket birds into the air, and created beautiful magic lilies and nature brushes. Year 1 became totally absorbed whilst painting to different styles of music and making tricky mazes. They also had fun coding Beebots.
At Upper School, classes enjoyed activities including a chrome music lab, creating beautiful spirograph designs, origami, investigating mobile forces, 'bristlebots', making paper sculptures, investigating bridge construction, designing organisms and water filtering systems and more!
It has been the most wonderful day of enrichment, and greatly enjoyed by all. Many thanks to our visiting parent helpers and to all of the staff involved in making the day such a success.
Robert Swan Visit
On Tuesday, we welcomed Robert Swan OBE for a truly memorable Upper School assembly. Robert is the first man ever to walk to both the north and south poles. His recent expeditions involve using solely renewable energy. His mission to inspire the next generation to take care of the planet has meant that he spends his time talking to world leaders and educators about what steps are needed to ensure we are protecting our environment both locally and globally.
Robert shared photos and videos of his first expeditions from 1984 to 1989, as well as one of his trips to Antarctica back in 2012, when Mrs. McLaughlin accompanied him. He described in detail the awe-inspiring story of his travels to the north and south poles with moments of great beauty and peril. He also spoke about his son Barney’s current mission in Australia where they are trying to restore the world’s oldest rainforest.
Teachers and pupils were left feeling inspired and wanting to do more to protect our beautiful planet. If there was one message to share with our St. Helen’s College community from Robert Swan’s visit, it would be his famous quote: “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.”
The school has joined the 2041 Schools: Champions of Antarctica initiative to help educate young people about the need to protect the world’s last great wilderness beyond the current agreement date of 2041.
You can find out more about Robert Swan and his projects using the links below:
https://www.2041school.com/
https://robertswan.com/
We plan to see Robert again in 2025 in a live-link assembly from his research centre in Antarctica, where he will be spending the whole winter using only solar, wind and biofuel!
St. Helen's College Receives Gold STARS Award
We are proud to report that St. Helen's College has, once again, been awarded the Gold STARS accreditation by Transport for London. This award recognises our ongoing work on School Travel And Road Safety.
Year 1 Maths And Phonics Evening
Thank you to all of the Year 1 parents who attended the Maths And Phonics Evening at Lower School on Wednesday. It is so important that families and school work in partnership to support the children in their educational endeavours, and we hope that you found the evening useful.
Online Safety
Whatsapp is the most widely used messaging platform on the planet, with over two billion users (forecast to become three billion by 2025), across more than 180 countries. The majority of those people (70%) open the app at least once a day – but what exactly are they seeing? Contact from strangers, fake news and convincing scams are all amongst the service’s well-documented hazards.
According to Ofcom, Whatsapp is used by more than half of 3 to 17 year olds in the UK (including one in three from the 8 to 11 age bracket), despite its 16+ age restriction.
National Online Safety provides this information leaflet for parents about the use of Whatsapp. We urge you to read it and retain it for your reference.
We would also like to remind parents that it is not appropriate for any child at St. Helen's College to have access to social media apps such as Whatsapp (which has an age rating of 16), Snapchat (which accounts for over half the online grooming the UK), Tiktok or similar. Primary school aged children are simply not mature enough to experience these apps safely, no matter how independent they may seem in other areas of their lives. This stance is shared by all online safety experts. While we educate the pupils at school about online safety, parents have a crucial part to play in keeping children safe online.
More Karate Success!
Several St. Helen's College pupils and Old Helenians enjoyed success with the KML Karate Club at the UK International Championships held at Warwick University last weekend.
This prestigious tournament forms part of the club's preparation for the upcoming International Banzai Cup in Berlin. Out of the 35 clubs participating, KML Karate brought home the most medals and secured third place in the success chart.
Well done to all of the SHC pupils and Old Helenians who competed.
Harvest Festivals
Our Upper School Harvest Festival Service will take place next Friday at All Saints' Church at 9.15 a.m. Upper School parents are warmly invited to join us if they are able to.
We would be most grateful for Harvest donations from Upper School parents ahead of the service. These should be dropped into the Upper School office on Wednesday or Thursday next week. We would really appreciate made up boxes/hampers filled with long-life food such as canned goods, rice, pasta, etc. If anyone has a few fruits, vegetables or flowers from their garden that could enhance the display in the church, that would be lovely (but please note that only a few would be needed and these are NOT suitable items for donations so should not be purchased!). All donations will be distributed by the Salvation Army to those in need in Hillingdon.
Lower School Harvest Assemblies will take place slightly later in the term and we will send the arrangements for these in due course.
Parents' Evenings
Parents' evenings for Ducklings, Nursery, Reception and Year 1 will be held on the following days:
Wednesday 4th October (4.00 - 7.00 p.m.)
Thursday 12th October (5.00 - 8.00 p.m.)
To book your appointment, please use the following link. Bookings will be live from 12.00 p.m. on Monday 25th September.
https://sthelens.schoolcloud.co.uk/
When booking appointments, parents should use the following format for class names:
Ducklings Kindergarten
Robins Nursery
Wrens Nursery
Owls
Kingfishers
1C
1R
Next Week
Here is a reminder of what is coming up next week.
Monday 25th September - Year 4 Ancient Greek Day
Wednesday 27th September - Year 5 Trip: Hampton Court Palace
Wednesday 27th September - Year 6 Trip: Henry Moore Studios & Gardens
Thursday 28th September - Reception Trip: Odds Farm
Thursday 28th September - Year 2 Trip: Chiltern Open Air Museum
Friday 29th September - Upper School Harvest Festival at All Saints Church (9.15 a.m.)
Friday 29th September - Month End Music Recital in the Evans Hall (3.45 p.m.)
Posted on: 15/09/2023Weekly News - Friday 15th September 2023
St. Helen's College Centenary
This academic year is the St. Helen's College Centenary year! We launched our centenary celebrations this week with two special events.
On Thursday evening, we hosted a reception for staff, former staff and alumni. The event was very well attended, with over 75 alumni and ex-staff returning to join the current staff body. We were treated to beautiful music from Mrs. Nash's string quartet and some super event catering from Soula and her Accent team. We all enjoyed hearing alumni share memories of their time with us, as well as speeches from Mr. Crehan and Ms Drummond and a vocal performance from Mrs. Crehan!
Staff and visitors browsed through a display of history boards, photographs and other memorabilia from as far back as the 1920s. So much has changed since then, but everyone agreed that much has stayed the same. St. Helen's College has, for 100 years, remained true to a set of aims and values which define our school culture and shape the lives of so many.
On Friday, we used St. Helen's Day to launch the centenary to the pupils. At Upper School, our pupils heard from two Old Helenians, Tito Oshewa and Georgia Emanuel, who are about to embark on new adventures at California's Stanford University and Cambridge University respectively. The pupils were also treated to a poem performed by Mrs. Green and Mrs. Ruffle, who are also ex-pupils. Mrs. Green is also the mum of Charlee! The displays of history and memorabilia were brought out into the Evans Garden so that pupils could find out about life at St. Helen's College in days gone by. We distributed our SHC values cards to our new Year 2 pupils and, for the first time, we all sang the school song with its new centenary verse.
We had other musical performances, too. Shayna C, Millie B and Alicia Z did a fantastic job as the string trio and Hana H, Zarifa D and Grace O'H gave a vocal performance. Mrs. Crehan also performed a song for the children.
Every child in the school has received a '100 Things To Do In Our Centenary Year' booklet and we very much hope that you will enjoy sharing these experiences as a family.
Next summer, as the academic year draws to a close, we will be hosting a centenary celebration event to which current parents will be invited. We hope that many of you will wish to join us - it is likely to be on the final evening of the year (Friday 12th July), with a centenary concert and art exhibition the evening before (Thursday 11th July). Please pop these dates in your diaries now and look out for further information as the year moves on.
Staff News
Many congratulations to Ms Drummond, who graduated last weekend and is now the proud holder of the MEd in Educational Leadership and Management (University of Buckingham), alongside a Level 7 Senior Leader (Degree) with the Chartered Managers Institute.
Ms Drummond is living proof that a lifelong love of learning is a wonderful thing!
This week, Ms Porteous celebrated twenty years of working for St. Helen's College. During this time, she has cared for so many children at our After School and Holiday Clubs. She has made (and continues to make) a real difference to many young lives, and we thank her for her commitment to the school so far.
After a year's sabbatical, we are delighted to welcome Mrs. Bool back to the Finance Office. She has been joined by Mrs. Sonigra, who had most recently worked at St. Helen's School in Northwood. Thank you for bearing with us during the changes in staffing in the Finance department. Normal service has now resumed!
Co-Curriculum Clubs
Co-curriculum activities will begin next week, from Monday 18th September.
Please note, however, that Karate Club will not begin until the following week (and will instead run a session in the final week of term). This is because Mr. Kumedzina, our Karate Coach, will be joining the Higashi national squad for the Banzai International Cup in Berlin next Friday. We wish the squad much luck!
We still have a few vacancies for the following clubs. Please contact Mr. Harrington at lharrington@sthelenscollege.com if your child would like to join one of these:
Y2/3 Taekwondo - Tuesday 12.20 - 1.00 p.m.
Y2/3 Taekwondo - Thursday 12.20 - 1.00 p.m.
Y4/5/6 Taekwondo - Thursday 1.00 - 1.45 p.m.
Y5/6 Tennis - Thursday 1.00 - 1.45 p.m.
Next Week
Monday 18th September - Individual pupil photographs at Ducklings
Tuesday 19th September - Individual pupil photographs at Lower School (siblings from 7.40 a.m.)
Wednesday 20th September - Maths and Phonics evening for Year 1 (1C at 6.00 p.m., 1R at 6.45 p.m.)
Thursday 21st September - Individual pupil photographs at Upper School (siblings from 7.40 a.m.)
Friday 22nd September - STEAM Day
Open Morning - Tuesday 3rd October
Our next 'School at Work' Open Morning for prospective parents will take place on Tuesday 3rd October. If you know of anyone with a 0-3 year old who might be interested in finding out more about St. Helen's College, please ask them to reserve an appointment via our website or to contact Mrs. Smith at susmith@sthelenscollege.com. There are just a few slots left now!
2024 Entry - Ducklings and Nursery
If your St. Helen's College child has a sibling born between 01.09.20 and 31.08.22, and you have not yet registered them for entry to the school, please do so as soon as possible. The entry processes for Ducklings 2024 and Nursery 2024 will begin shortly. You can access the online registration form here.
Old Helenian To Run The London Marathon!
Mrs. Lawrence's son James, who is a former St. Helen's College pupil, will be running the London Marathon 2024 for his father and the thousands of other men affected by prostate cancer every year.
The Lawrence family have been valued members of the St. Helen's College community for many, many years and we wish James all the very best for his training and for the Marathon run itself.
You can find out more information about why James has chosen to run, and sponsor him by donating to support prostate cancer research, at the link below. Many thanks indeed, from the whole Lawrence family, for your generosity and support.
https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/london-marathon-2024-44630
Homestart Volunteering
Homestart Hillingdon are a charity based at All Saints Church Hall. They do very valuable work, recruiting, training and co-ordinating volunteers to help struggling families with at least one child under the age of 5, across Hillingdon borough.
All parents know how relentless and difficult (as well as joyful!) parenting small children can be,even without other challenges. Homestart help families with issues including post-natal depression, isolation, multiple birth, disability and managing difficult personal circumstances.
Homestart volunteers need to be parents (or grandparents) and have at least half a day a week (during normal working hours) to commit to the role, as well as attending Homestart's Volunteer Training Course (9 sessions during school hours). The next course will run on Mondays, starting on the 9th October.
Some of the team from Homestart Hillingdon will be at St. Helen's College on Friday 22nd September to introduce themselves and their work to parents, in the hope that some of our community might be interested in volunteering with them. You can find them next Friday at:
7:50 - 8:45 a.m. - at the Lower School Entrance (beside the Methodist Hall)
3:10 - 4:00 p.m. - at the Upper School Entrance (on Parkway)
You can find out more at www.homestart-hillingdon.org.uk.
Thames Valley Cavaliers Basketball Sessions For Girls
Thames Valley Cavaliers have launched an all-girls basketball session, which is now taking place every Saturday at Uxbridge College from 12 - 1.30 p.m. The session is open to girls aged 7-17 and all abilities are welcome.
TVC want to see girls' basketball within the Borough of Hillingdon grow and participation increase. They are also looking to develop a girls' basketball team to represent the Borough in the London Youth Games for the first time in several years.
There are coaches running the session who play on the Thames Valley Cavaliers WNBL women's team, and pupils will have an opportunity to watch them compete in a league fixture on the home court after the session.
Full details, including how to sign up, are available here.
Important Reminders
The safety of our children and the members of the local community is of paramount importance to us all. Please could we remind all drivers to observe speed limits around the school site and to adhere closely to the school parking regulations, which are published here.
As well as being crucial to protect the safety of other drivers, pedestrians and cyclists, following these regulations closely will ensure that the St. Helen's community remains mindful of our neighbours and helps to promote the school's reputation within the local community.
Posted on: 8/09/2023Weekly News - Friday 8th September 2023
It has been an exciting and busy first few days back at school, as the pupils have entered their new year groups and we have welcomed all of our brand new children.
Meet The Teacher Evenings
Following on from our Early Years and Key Stage 1 'Meet The Teacher' evenings last term, we held successful 'Meet The Teacher' evenings for all Key Stage 2 classes this week. It was lovely to see so many families and we hope that you found the meetings useful. Open, frequent communication between home and school is essential to support the pupils' education and well-being, so please do keep in touch with your class teacher as we move through the term and the year.
Year 2 Coffee Morning
The transition from Lower School to Upper School has gone well for our Year 2 pupils and we were delighted to welcome their parents into Upper School today for a coffee morning too.
PA Welcome Event
A reminder that the PA Welcome Event will take place in the Evans Hall at Upper School tomorrow from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. There will be refreshments and an opportunity to meet other parents and children. We hope that families who are new to the school will come along to meet others, and for the first time this year the event is open to all existing families too!
Co-Curricular Activities
Bookings for autumn term co-curricular activities open TODAY at 4 p.m. and close on Sunday at 11.59 p.m.
Please log in to your SchoolsBuddy account to submit your child's preferences.
It is essential that you discuss choices with your child before submitting them; once clubs are allocated they cannot be changed and it is important to everyone that your child takes part in clubs that they enjoy and want to attend.
Library News
We are delighted with the new building that was installed at Lower School over the summer to house the Lower School library and welfare room, by local company Blyss Garden Rooms. Here you can see the Blyss workers in front of the building! We know that our Lower School children are going to appreciate and make the most of their lovely new library.
At Upper School, it is super to have the library full of readers and inquisitive minds once more. We welcomed 2H and 2R to the Upper School Library for the first time this week. Many books were borrowed and many excellent questions were asked by the curious children. The library is open every lunchtime for the children, and in addition Year 2 will have a timetabled class visit.
The Chiswick Book Festival runs from the 6th to 13th September. There will be lots on offer for families and adults at various locations, with many well known faces taking part. Children's workshops are concentrated mainly on the Saturday and are still bookable at this link: Festival events.
Class List
The Parents' Association are now using Class List to communicate with parents. The app has a wealth of features - parents can communicate with each other in class and/or year groups, find other families for car shares, sell second hand uniform and more. If you have not yet signed up, please do so as soon as possible. Your PA Class Rep will be keen to help should you need them and you can always reach the Parents' Association committee at pa@sthelenscollege.com. As usual, the Parents' Association are busy planning some lovely social events and other initiatives for the forthcoming academic year and we urge all parents to support them in enhancing our wonderful parental community spirit!
Karate News
Over the weekend, several St. Helen's College pupils and Old Helenians competed in the British Karate Federation International Championships at Sheffield Ponds Forge stadium and there were some impressive achievements.
Freya and Aleya won silver medals in pairs kata.
Freya, Aleya, Naiya, and Rania won bronze medals in team kumite (fighting).
Rania and Naiya won bronze medals in pairs kata.
Myla, Inaya, and Grace won bronze medals in team kumite.
This tournament was a fantastic opportunity and served as perfect preparation for the major international championships in Berlin in a couple of weeks. We send good luck wishes to the St. Helen's College pupils and Old Helenians who will proudly represent the Higashi Karate Kai national squad there!
Music Result
We have received news of an additional music examination result from the summer term. Congratulations to Hana H, who achieved a pass in her Grade 2 flute!
Individual Music Lessons
There are currently spaces available for Violin, Cello, Trumpet, Flute and Singing lessons. To register your interest please complete this Google Form.
Toddler Play Sessions
Mr. Harrington's wife runs 'Mini Me Town' play sessions for children up to the age of six, which encourage exploration through play. If you are interested in attending with your child to encourage their imaginative play and meet other parents and children, you can find details on the poster here and/or visit the Mini Me Town website for further details: www.minimetown.co.uk.
Posted on: 14/07/2023Weekly News - Friday 14th July 2023
Wishing you all an enjoyable, peaceful summer holiday. We look forward to seeing all of the children return and welcoming all of our new families next term.
Video Of Memories 2022-2023
Ms Thomas has very kindly put together this video of some of the events and activities the children have enjoyed during this academic year at school. We hope you enjoy it!
End Of Term News
After a final tally of house points for the entire academic year, the House Cup was today awarded to Hibernia. Congratulations to all of the members of Hibernia who contributed to the win, and very well done to pupils from the other three houses who earned so many house points to make it a tight competition. The final house point totals for the year were:
Hibernia 5261
Windsor 5173
Cambria 5051
Caledonia 4965
We would like to congratulate our Year 3, 4 and 5 prizewinners who received trophies and book tokens today to recognise an excellent year of effort and achievement.
The Upper School tennis finals were held this week. The winners were:
Year 3: Mona C and Parth K
Year 4: Simar C and Avar D
Year 5: Tiya T and Aiden T
Year 6: Arshia S and Xavier B.
We are delighted to announce the names of our new pupil leadership team. From September, these Year 6 children will be taking on the major positions of responsibility:
Head Girl - Samara P
Head Boy - Aiden T
Deputy Head Girl - Tiya T
Deputy Head Boy - Raiden B
Caledonia House Captains - Dylan C and Nya O-A
Cambria House Captains - Anand V and Grace O'H
Hibernia House Captains - Luca H and Charlee G
Windsor House Captains - Ryley J and Verity S
It was an emotional morning for staff and pupils today as we said farewell to Mrs. Allery after so many years of service to St. Helen's College. We wish her all the best for her retirement and extend our deepest gratitude to her for the dedication, hard work and love she has shown throughout her time with the school.
We said goodbye also to Miss Flemming, who has been a much valued member of the Lower School TALA team and has also been our Holiday Club Manager of late. We wish her well on her forthcoming travels and thank her for all that she has done.
Mrs. Collier, one of our peripatetic music teachers, has been with us for some years now and we are very sorry to see her go as she expands her teaching at another school. Her pupils will miss her greatly, and so will we. Thank you, Mrs. Collier, for your service to the school and your commitment to the pupils.
Mrs. Hawkes will be much missed at St. Helen's College; she leaves us today to relocate with her family to the west country. Mrs. Hawkes was a pupil at St. Helen's College herself and, as well as working in our wraparound care provision over the years, has recently inspired so many vocalists at the school with her love of singing, her extremely high standards, and her first class care for the children.
Our final staff leaver is Ms Kharoti. She will be studying in Brighton but we hope we may see her back at St. Helen's College wraparound care in the future. Good luck Ms Kharoti!
Amazing Year 6 Show - Honk Jr!
The children of Year 6 certainly rounded off their time at St. Helen's College with a bang this week, as they performed their musical Honk Jr! at The Compass Theatre in Ickenham on Wednesday and Thursday.
This was a spectacular show. The singing, dancing, stagecraft and acting were all superb and the costumes were just something else! We are so grateful to everyone who was involved in the production and we are so proud of our Year 6 children for their amazing efforts, talents, confidence and dedication. It has been a privilege to watch their dramatic talents develop over the years and we wish them all well, and hope that they continue to find joy in performing, as they leave us.
You can see more photographs of the Year 6 children in their costumes on our Galleries page.
School Magazine 2022-2023
We have sent home a copy of the school magazine for each family. We hope that you will enjoy looking through this and reflecting on all that has gone on throughout the school during this academic year. You can also see many examples of the artwork produced by children this year in our Art Gallery online on the Galleries page.
ABRSM Exam Results
We are very proud of our musicians who have been working so hard all year, practising their instruments/singing and showing real commitment to rehearsal and performance. Since the last report, we have received these exam results. Well done everyone!
Emily S
5G
Piano
2
Merit
Tiya T
5G
Piano
1
Distinction
Shaylen P
3M
Piano
1
Distinction
Arshia S
6B
Piano
4
Pass
Sienna D
5G
Piano
1
Pass
Anand V
5G
Piano
1
Pass
Caitlin P
3M
Piano
Initial
Distinction
Armaan V
3B
Piano
Initial
Merit
Aaran T
3B
Piano
Initial
Pass
Verity S
5A
Violin
2
Distinction
Aria M
3M
Violin
2
Merit
Millie B
3B
Violin
Initial
Merit
Arjun P
4L
Cello
3
Merit
Aran P
3B
Cello
3
Merit
Lavanya B
6B
Cello
2
Pass
Karter P
4L
Cello
1
Pass
Alex A
4L
Cello
Initial
Merit
Dominic M
6B
Trumpet
3
Pass
Zinnia M
4L
Trumpet
1
Pass
Evie J
4L
French Horn
2
Distinction
Hana H
5A
Singing
2
Merit
Aiden T
5A
Guitar
2
Merit
Arjun C
5A
Guitar
2
Pass
Luca H
5A
Guitar
2
Pass
Marco K
5G
Guitar
1
Pass
FREE Baby Mindfulness Classes
Mrs. McLaughlin will have some spaces at her Baby Mindfulness sessions from September. These run on Wednesday mornings at 9 a.m. in six weekly blocks and are suitable for babies from birth until they begin to crawl. They provide a safe, supportive space for mums and babies to bond and take part in Mindfulness and some gentle yoga. The classes are available, free of charge, to anyone with a baby of the right age - parents do not need to have a child at St. Helen's College or be intending to send one here! If you would like to attend, or know anyone who might like to, please contact Mrs. McLaughlin at pmclaughlin@sthelenscollege.com.
September 2024 Entry - Ducklings and Nursery
If you have a child who will be eligible to join St. Helen's College in September 2024 (either into Ducklings or into Nursery) and you have not yet registered him or her, please do so at your earliest convenience. The next admissions cycle begins in September when the new academic year begins. Thank you.
Next Term
The School Calendar has been updated for next term. Please do look through and make a note of dates relevant to your child.
The uniform/equipment list and menu for next term are available on the School Documents page of the website.
Aman Sidhu
11th November 1977 - 30th June 2023
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Mr. Aman Sidhu, an alumnus of St. Helen’s College. Aman passed away peacefully on 30th June surrounded by his family.
Aman had been part of the St. Helen’s College community for over forty years and attended St. Helen’s College from 1982-1989 under the care of Mr. & Mrs. Crehan. The Sidhus have always had a deep connection with the school, unwavering loyalty and the pride that comes along with that. Aman’s children were also former students of St. Helen’s College, his youngest, Devan, having left the school just last year. Amongst the tributes pouring in for Aman were these from Mr. Crehan and Ms Drummond.
‘I remember Aman as a quiet but cheerful boy who had a twinkle in his eye and a mischievous sense of humour. In class, he was a hard-working student who took pride in his achievements. He enjoyed his football, and used to run rings around me when we played in Court Park! Latterly, it was a huge pleasure to welcome his children, Rhea and Devan, back to St. Helen’s College, and to meet Aman again. He still had that twinkle! His early passing is a huge loss to his family and to all who knew and loved him.’ - Dominic Crehan.
“Mr. Sidhu was a very caring dad to Rhea and Devan and a great supporter of St. Helen's College as one of our alumni. He always showed a great interest and pride in the children's achievements over the years and it is with great sadness that the community has lost such a loving and caring father and friend to many”. - Shirley Drummond.
A private funeral service took place yesterday (13th July), where family and friends were able to pay their respects and say their final goodbyes. We offer our heartfelt condolences to Aman's family at this difficult time.
The Sidhu family kindly wishes for memorial donations to be made to the Hillingdon Hospital Charity, a charity deeply close to Aman’s heart. The link for donations is below.
https://amansidhu.muchloved.com/
The Summer Games Free Family Fun Day
Presented by Hillingdon Libraries in support of their Summer Reading Challenge, The Summer Games will be at The Great Barn, Manor Farm, Bury Street, Ruislip HA4 8BD on Thursday 17 August from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. This is a fun, free, family day out and there is no need to book, families may simply turn up on the day.
There will be a story telling zone, a chance to try out games old and new with Past Times Pastimes and a craft zone where children can make their own Hero Arm, use recycled materials with STEM activity Pom Pom Propulsion and try out Bottle Bowling with the Recycling Team. There will also be sessions with Spectrum Drama. Jones the Bones is a medical exploration of the human body using a life size skeleton and his ‘minder’ who shows how the organs/muscles work together to enable humans to function, and Isaac Newton will demonstrate the laws of motion with a skateboard!
Dr. Bike will be there so you may also take your bike along for any basic bike repairs and Better Leisure will be running a mini circuits challenge. There will also be ice cream and coffee available.
Perform In The Park
Perform In The Park is London's first ever festival of children's theatre. You may wish to visit with your children to inspire and enhance their love of drama! You can find details here.
Summer Tennis Camps
Our tennis coach Mr. Stidder will once again be running tennis camps locally over the summer holidays. You can find full details here.
Basketball Sessions For Girls
Thames Valley Cavaliers are running basketball sessions for girls aged 7+ on Saturdays at Uxbridge College. You can find details here.
Posted on: 7/07/2023Weekly News - Friday 7th July 2023
Cancer Research UK Charity Week
Thank you so much to every member of the St. Helen's Community who has been involved in raising money for Cancer Research UK this week.
Our Year 5 children held a cake sale on Tuesday morning at Upper School which was very popular!
The school was pink and blue all over on Thursday when the pupils and staff wore their own clothes in CRUK colours in return for making a donation. Ducklings and Lower School children took part in a Danceathon on this day and the Upper School children enjoyed a walk around Court Park.
Lower School children will also have the opportunity to 'Soak The Teacher' next Friday!
The total raised so far by the SHC community is well over £1000. It is not too late to donate if you would still like to do so. Our JustGiving page remains active and you can donate by following this link:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/st-helens-college-1688112386262
Sue Blackstone
We are devastated to share the news of the death of our former St. Helen's College colleague Sue Blackstone. Many families will remember Mrs. Blackstone who worked with the school for around thirty years, most recently as our Wraparound Care Manager. She dedicated so much time and love to the children of St. Helen's College before her retirement a few years ago and had been enjoying time with family and friends before her death. She will be very fondly remembered and very greatly missed by all.
Ducklings Sports Day
Today our youngest St. Helenians enjoyed their first ever St. Helen's College Sports Day in the Ducklings grounds, where they took part in several different activities designed to develop their future sporting prowess!
Wimbledon!
On Monday 8 of our Year 6 children were lucky enough to go to Wimbledon for the first day of the tennis championships. We saw some fantastic tennis and had a great day out. The children were a credit to the school and really relished the opportunity to be inspired by some of the best tennis players in the world!
Year 1 Trip To Mad Bess Woods
Despite the heavy showers, rain did not stop play for Year 1 at Mad Bess Woods on Wednesday! The children had lots of fun playing on the lawn before going on a mini trek in the woods. Due to the damp weather they were unfortunately able to find many different minibeasts.
After lunch they explored Mrs. Hunt's garden and found some of the sunflowers we had planted in the spring. One of them is now nearly six feet tall! They finished the trip with a visit from Pino and his ice cream van! All agreed it was a wonderful way to celebrate a great year.
Prizegiving
On Thursday evening we enjoyed a marvellous evening reception and Prizegiving ceremony in The Evans Garden at Upper School, at which our leaving Year 6 children were recognised for their hard work, talents, personal development and contribution to the school. Our Guest of Honour was Peter Cregg who inspired the pupils by speaking about self belief and how to make the make the most of one's potential. It was very special to celebrate our leavers' achievements and personal qualities with such a ceremony, which included beautiful performances from the Chamber Choir and a stunning vocal solo from Minaya W. Thank you to all of the parents who attended, to the Chamber Choir and Minaya for their musicality, and to all of the staff involved in organising the evening.
Year 6 Projects And Teacher For A Day
The Year 6 children have produced some wonderful independent projects this year and on Wednesday these were exhibited around the school for parents and the other Upper School children to see.
On Friday, Year 6 took control of the school as they became 'Teacher For A Day'. According to the teacher role they were assigned, they led assembly, taught lessons at both Upper and Lower School, assisted with supervision, experienced a morning of office work, cut grass or did other maintenance jobs, toured prospective parents, helped run the kitchen for a morning and much more. Everyone had a lot of fun and learnt a lot too! The Year 6 pupils also raised £447 for CRUK by buying raffle tickets in advance for the teacher they wanted to be!
Hillingdon Chess Tournament
On Sunday 2nd July, some of our keen chess players took part in the Hillingdon Chess Tournament. Mr. Foale reports that it was a fun, hard-fought tournament. St. Helen's College came third and individual successes were:
Kamran-Cyrus A came third in Year 6 and got a bronze medal.
Leonard S got first place in Year 2 and got a gold medal.
It was a Year 2 player from another school who won the tournament overall, beating much older players to take the title, which goes to show that it is always worth uncovering a new talent and working to develop it, no matter how young you are!
All the players behaved well and showed determination combined with sportsmanship. We are proud of all the participants.
Musical Success
Minaya W (Year 6) auditioned at the Guildhall Centre for Young Musicians (CYM) on Saturday, playing her viola, and was offered a place! Minaya is looking forward to playing with the CYM Symphony/Chamber Orchestra while exploring composing and music technology. The Guildhall Centre is super-selective and ranked number one in Arts, Drama and Music in the University Guide 2023 so this is a fantastic achievement. Well done, Minaya!
Pupil v Staff Rounders
On Friday afternoon, the staff took on the Year 6 pupils in our annual rounders match at Court Park, cheered on by the other classes from Upper School. As usual, it was a fiercely contested game and an enormously fun afternoon! The staff were victorious on the day.
Move Up Mornings
The teachers all very much enjoyed meeting the pupils they will be teaching next year during our annual 'Move Up Mornings' this week. We hope that the children also enjoyed seeing their new classrooms and meeting their new teachers.
Nursery and Ducklings Parents' Evenings
It was lovely to see many Ducklings and Nursery parents at the parents' evening on Thursday. We hope that you found the conversations useful.
Year 6 Musical - Honk! Jr.
Our Year 6 classes have been working very hard to prepare their grand summer musical production, Honk! Jr, which they will be performing at The Compass Theatre on Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13th July. Tickets are now on sale and must be booked directly with The Compass Theatre's box office.
There is a matinee performance at 2 p.m. on Thursday 13th July and if you are able to do so, we encourage parents to take child(ren) to see this show. You will be permitted to collect them early from school on that day in order to do so. It will be particularly valuable for the children in Years 4 and 5 to see the production as it will be their turn to stage their own Year 6 musical soon!
There are also performances at 7.30 p.m. on Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13th July.
The link for ordering tickets is here: Honk! | Hillingdon Theatres.
Calendar Reminders - Last Week Of Term
Wednesday 12th July - Reception class outings to Oak Farm Library
Wednesday 12th July - 7.30 p.m. Year 6 performance of Honk! Jr.
Thursday 13th July - 2.00 p.m. & 7.30 p.m. Year 6 performances of Honk! Jr.
Friday 14th July - End of Term (Half Day)
End of term pick up times are:
11.50 a.m. Ducklings and Nursery
12.00 p.m. Reception
12.10 p.m. Year 1 and Year 2
12.20 p.m. Year 3 and Year 4
12.30 p.m. Year 5 and Year 6
Funtasia will be running on the last day of term for Nursery to Year 6, located at Lower School - please ensure that you book a place for your child if you need it. Year 2 to Year 6 children will be escorted across to Lower School.
Summer Library Events
Oak Farm Library are running some events and schemes to help children continue with their reading over the summer and to inspire them to try new and different books. You can find full details on their summer newsletter here.
Summer Netball Camp
Blaze Netball Club will be running a summer camp for children from Reception to Year 9 at Douay Martyrs School from 21st to 24th August. You can find details here.
Hillingdon Leisure Complex Fun Weeks
There will be two fun weeks at Hillingdon Sports Centre this summer. You can find details here.
Posted on: 30/06/2023Weekly News - Friday 30th June 2023
PA Summer Fete
Wow! What a wonderful day it was last Saturday when the St. Helen's College community came together in the sunshine for the PA Summer Fete. The children clearly enjoyed showing off their talents on the stage and visiting all of the stalls, and there was a real buzz as parents and staff spent time together too. Many, many thanks to the PA Committee and all of the parents, staff and pupils who gave up their time and made generous donations to support the event.
The PA Committee have sent this message to be shared with the community:
We extend our sincerest thanks for your contributions to the success of the summer fete. Your support, efforts and participation made the event truly remarkable. From setting up stalls and organising activities to performances and creating a lively atmosphere, your dedication was instrumental in creating an unforgettable experience for everyone involved.
We are delighted to hear that you had a fantastic time at the summer fete. It was a pleasure to witness the strong sense of community as families, teachers, and children came together to celebrate and enjoy the festivities. Your enthusiasm and positive energy made the event truly memorable.
Furthermore, we would like to express our appreciation for the funds raised during the summer fete. Your generous contributions will have a significant impact on supporting the enhancement of the learning environment and providing valuable opportunities for our children. We are grateful for your continued support and the positive difference you are making in the lives of our students.
Once again, a heartfelt thank you to all the teachers, parents, and children who made the summer fete an exceptional success. Your dedication, hard work and support have left a lasting impression and we are excited about the future events and collaborations that await us. Together, we have created cherished memories and strengthened our community bonds.
Prep Sports Day
Thank you to all of the parents and other spectators who came along to Hillingdon Sports & Leisure Complex today to support the children in Years 3 - 6 at their Sports Day. As always, it was a wonderful occasion. We will share further details and pictures when we have them!
Chess Club News
This week the chess players in Year 4/5/6 participated in a fun chess tournament . The winner was Ayush. There were three runners up: Mustafa, Zak and Jacob.
On Sunday we wish the following students good luck as they will be participating in the Hillingdon chess tournament.
Avyuday
Kamran
Leonard
Parth
Rayhan
Verity
Reception Trip To Whipsnade
On Thursday our Reception classes enjoyed an outing to Whipsnade Zoo where they very excited to meet and learn about many different animals!
Ducklings And Nursery Parents' Evenings
Thank you to those parents who came into school on Tuesday for the Ducklings and Nursery parents' evenings. We hope that you found the conversations useful.
Charity Week - Cancer Research UK
Next week, the St. Helen's College community will be raising money for Cancer Research UK. There will be various activities going on around school to raise money for this most important cause, which is close to our hearts.
On Tuesday in Upper School, there will be a cake sale run by Year 5. Charlee and Sienna will also be selling handmade bracelets again this year. Upper School children may bring money into school in order to buy cakes and bracelets.
On Thursday the children at all three sites may wear their own clothes with the CRUK colours of pink and blue. On this day, Upper School children will be taking part in a walk around Court Park while the Lower School and Ducklings children will be involved in a Danceathon. There is a suggested minimum donation of £3 for the tog day and activities, but all contributions will be most be gratefully received for Cancer Research UK. You may donate online by following this link:
âhttps://www.justgiving.com/page/st-helens-college-1688112386262
Year 6 Musical - Honk! Jr.
Our Year 6 classes have been working very hard to prepare their grand summer musical production, Honk! Jr, which they will be performing at The Compass Theatre on Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13th July. Tickets are now on sale and must be booked directly with The Compass Theatre's box office.
There is a matinee performance at 2 p.m. on Thursday 13th July and if you are able to do so, we encourage parents to take child(ren) to see this show. You will be permitted to collect them early from school on that day in order to do so. It will be particularly valuable for the children in Years 4 and 5 to see the production as it will be their turn to stage their own Year 6 musical soon!
There are also performances at 7.30 p.m. on Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13th July.
The link for ordering tickets is here: Honk! | Hillingdon Theatres.
Summer Holiday Club
Holiday Club bookings for the summer holiday will go live at 6 p.m. today. Please log in to your SchoolsBuddy account to make your bookings. Bookings must be made by Wednesday 12th July to allow us to organise Holiday Club staffing.
Uniform & Equipment
The Uniform & Equipment list for the 2023-2024 academic year has been posted to the School Documents page of the website. There are a few changes to required uniform which have been made to reduce the costs for parents and to reduce the weight of school bags for the children at Upper School. The changes are summarised below. In all cases, existing uniform may be used during a transition period so that nothing has to be replaced unnecessarily.
At Upper School, the green 3-in-1 coat is no longer a compulsory item; the black SHC rain mac may be worn over school uniform from September. It is fine for Upper School children to continue wearing the green coat if they still have one. The green coat remains a compulsory item for Lower School children.
The senior tracksuit is being introduced from Year 2 so that all Upper School children wear the senior tracksuit. If your child has a green junior tracksuit in good condition they may continue to wear this until they have grown out of it.
A new portrait style book bag is being introduced for children in Years 2-6. If your child already has a rucksack that is in good condition they may continue to use this, but the rucksacks will no longer be sold by the uniform suppliers. We would like to urge parents to check your child's school bag and ensure that they are not carrying unnecessary items into school, as they should not be carrying unnecessary weight. In particular, please refer to the uniform & equipment list and ensure that pencil cases contain only the items listed.
Calendar Reminders
Here are some reminders of upcoming events next week:
Monday 3rd July - Year 1-5 'Move Up Morning'
Tuesday 4th July - Nursery and Reception 'Move Up Morning'
Tuesday 4th July - Upper School cake sale and bracelet sale for CRUK (please allow Upper School pupils to bring in some money if they would like to buy cakes or bracelets)
Wednesday 5th July - Year 1 trip to Mad Bess Woods
Wednesday 5th July - Year 6 coffee morning and project exhibition
Wednesday 5th July - Year 6 v. Staff rounders match at Court Park (p.m.)
Thursday 6th July - Ducklings and Nursery Parents' Evenings from 3.45 p.m.
Thursday 6th July - Year 6 Prizegiving Evening from 6.15 p.m.
Friday 7th July - Year 6 'Teacher For A Day'
Friday 7th July - Ducklings Sports Day from 2 p.m.
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