School News and Head's Blog
Posted on: 29/06/2018Weekly News - Friday 29th June 2018
Wow! What a wonderful week of performances it has been, with the superb Year 1 and 2 summer productions and a lovely 3V assembly today.
Year 1 Production - Hansel and Gretel
With stellar solo performances and energetic ensemble numbers, the Year 1 performance would not have been out of place in the West End of London! Watching the children, it really was hard to believe that they are just 5 and 6 years old. The skills they showed in remembering all of their words (no prompts required!), in singing with enthusiasm and tunefulness, in moving about the stage and in engaging the audience really were verging on the professional. There were moments of comedy and of joy and the performance was enjoyed immensely by all who attended. Well done Year 1!
Year 2 Production - The Emerald Crown
Our Year 2 children entertained and educated us with a beautiful performance of The Emerald Crown, a play all about the rainforest canopy and the importance of protecting it. The stage was a riot of colour with, among others, brightly feathered birds, green creepers, bats, toucans, monkeys, an anaconda and even a jaguar! The message of the play - for us all to think about and mitigate the effects humans are having on our world's environment and eco-systems - was conveyed with grace, empathy and enthusiasm. There were some stunning solo and group singing performances and every child recited their lines and moved about the stage with confidence and clear enjoyment. Bravo, Year 2!
3V Assembly - St. Helen's Got Talent!
This morning's assembly was great fun at Upper School as 3V presented their own talent show, complete with judges Miss Wallis and Mr. Lewis! The children showed some mature and well-practised performance skills, whether acting as presenters or judges, playing instruments, doing gymnastics, singing or performing magic tricks. Who knew that the children of 3V had so many talents! Well done to all involved.
The Wizard of Oz
'The Wizard of Oz' will be performed by our Year 6 children at The Compass Theatre, Ickenham on Thursday 5th and Friday 6th July. Children at Upper School have had a preview performance in assembly this week to give them a taste of the show, and we know that many are eager to see the full production. Parents are permitted to take children out of school on Friday 6th July for the matinee performance and we would encourage you to do so if you can, so that the younger children can enjoy the performance and see the standard to which they will aspire by the time they reach Year 6! Please let us know if you plan to take your child(ren) out of school for the matinee performance.
Tickets are sold on a first come, first served basis so please do not delay - the Year 6 play is always of exceptionally high quality and it is lovely for pupils in the younger years to go and see it with their parents.
There are three performances:
Thursday 5th July 7.30 p.m.
Friday 6th July 2.00 p.m. matinee
Friday 6th July 7.30 p.m.
You may order tickets by following the link below.
http://www.hillingdontheatres.uk/index.php/events/wizard-of-oz/
Please note that, for copyright reasons, parents will not be allowed to take photographs or use video recording devices during the performances.
You can see some 'sneak preview' photographs of the cast in their costumes on our Galleries page.
2018 Leavers
We are very proud of all of our Year 6 leavers this year, who have all achieved so much during their time at St. Helen's College. We are delighted that, between the 38 children, they were offered 10 scholarships or exhibitions to leading Independent Schools.
As usual, the leavers are heading to a wide variety of schools, with 22 different destination schools this year from our 38 pupils.
14 children will be going to grammar schools
17 children will go to independent schools
7 children will be joining other schools
It is with a great sense of pride that we will bid them farewell at the end of this term, confident in the knowledge that they are exceptionally well prepared for their next steps at senior school.
Messages from the PA
PA Summer Fete
The summer fete has arrived and will be taking place in the Upper School playground from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. tomorrow (Saturday 30th June). Although there is no entrance fee, there will be donation buckets at the Parkway gate entrance, with any money raised being donated to Cancer Research UK. In addition, a group of Year 4 entrepreneurial children will be selling origami products from their stall with all proceeds being donated to Cancer Research UK. Please do visit their stall (Dream Team) and give them some support.
If you have any old uniform to donate, please do bring it along to the Fete and hand it to the PA uniform stall. Any uniform not sold after the fete is shipped to India, where less privileged school children are able to wear it. You can see photographs of pupils wearing SHC uniform on the Galleries page.
The fete is a wonderful event so feel free to bring along your friends and family. There will be a range of world food stalls where you can buy anything from Indian to mouth-watering hotdogs and burgers from our BBQ. We will also have lots of games for you to have a go at so, if you can, make sure you bring lots of change with you.
Any money raised on the stalls is reinvested into the school and this year the PA will be working with the school to bring improvements to the Lower School playground, which will complement the new setting.
Finally, one last plea for helpers. If anyone is available to help with set up on the day (from 8 a.m. or as soon as possible thereafter) or to help on any of the stalls, please do contact us at pa@sthelenscollege.com or fill your name in on the Google Sheet here. Thank you to everyone who has offered their support - this event would not be possible without your help and we really do appreciate it!
Sports Days
The PA would like to thank all of those parents who donated items for the Sports Day refreshments stall - the donations were truly amazing and we are very grateful! Thank you also to those parents who came and bought items from the stall. We hope that you all enjoyed the events as much as the children did!
Staff Farewells and Welcomes
Miss Wallis (5W) has now started her maternity leave and awaits the arrival of her bundle of joy. 5W will be under the care of Miss Beckett until the end of term. We wish Miss Wallis all the best and hope that she enjoys some rest before the big event.
Miss Toombs and Miss Martinez will also be leaving us at the end of this term.
Miss Toombs has a very exciting opportunity. Having been with us in the role of TALA for the past 3 years, she will be starting her teacher training in September. It is such a testament to the school that our staff go on to further their careers and although we are very sad to lose Miss Toombs, it is wonderful that she will be taking her career to the next level.
Miss Martinez has been with us for one year and in this short time she has inspired the children with her Spanish throughout the school and run our Funtasia After School care. Alas, Miss Martinez has made a decision from the heart and will moving to California to join her partner and return to further study in the USA.
We wish Miss Toombs and Miss Martinez all the best in their exciting new ventures.
Mrs. Lawrence (Wrens) will be taking over the running of Funtasia After School Club, ably assisted as ever by Mrs. Beagley at Upper School and Miss Williams at Lower School.
Following rigorous selection and interview processes, we are absolutely delighted to be welcoming some new members of staff to the school in September and we know that you will wish to join with us in welcoming them into the St. Helen's College community.
Miss Samantha Joiner will be a wonderful addition to the Lower School team as a Year 1 teacher. Miss Joiner has most recently been teaching a Reception class at Belmore Primary Academy, and is looking forward very much to joining St. Helen's College and to returning to teach Key Stage 1, having worked as a Key Stage 1 teacher for seven years previously.
Mr. Celso Aguiar will be joining us to teach Spanish throughout the school. A native Spanish speaker, Mr. Aguiar has lived in London for sixteen years and has a wealth of experience teaching children from Nursery age through to A Level. Mr. Aguiar will also be running our Spanish clubs next year.
Miss Sarah Ward will be joining us to teach PE/Games at Lower School. Miss Ward is a highly qualified and experienced PE/Games specialist who has most recently worked at Bushey Meads School, teaching PE across the school and acting as a Head of House and Form Tutor.
Miss Claire Heath will be joining the team as an Upper School Teaching and Learning Assistant. Miss Heath has lots of experience in the world of business and is no stranger to working with children - some of the girls may know her already from local Brownies groups, where she has been a leader for some years! She is currently spending some time at the school to get to know the children and routines ahead of a full time start in September.
We are currently recruiting for an Early Years Teaching Assistant. Full details can be found on the Join The Team page of the website.
Staff v Pupil Rounders
You may have thought the big match this week was England vs Belgium at the World Cup! You would be wrong - the big match was in fact the annual staff v pupils rounders match held at St. Helen's College on Thursday afternoon. Our Sports Captains organised the Year 5 and 6 pupils into two teams the take on a team of staff in two matches. The event was good fun and the pupils were skilled players scoring many rounders; they also fielded well to get many of the staff out. Match scores were:
A team vs staff - staff won 10.5 to 5.5
B team vs staff - staff won 12 to 9.5
Special thanks to Max, Ryeesa, Timi and Amrit for umpiring the matches so well and to Mrs. Kaura and Mrs. Field for supplying refreshments for everyone at the end of the match.
Sports Days Results
We were entertained last week with four amazing Sports Days in the space of four days, which showcased the children's talent for sport and competition.
Ducklings started the sporting festivities off on Tuesday with their Sports Day. Our youngest Helenians took part in a range of fun activities and races and were cheered on by their enthusiastic parents, who also took the opportunity to throw an 'after party' in the Ducklings garden!
Prep Sports Day on Wednesday opened with a fantastic opening ceremony in which our Head Boy and Girl teams welcomed everyone and we were then treated to a brilliant dance display by our Year 4 girls, who demonstrated some outstanding hula hooping skills. If anyone has a video of the dance we would love to have a copy for the school gallery - please get in contact if you do.
New Prep Sports Day records set this year include:
Year 5 girls' long jump - a 20 year old school record was broken by Hebe with a jump of 3.40m. Hebe also broke two more school records, in the Year 5 girls' 400m with a time of 1 minute 14 seconds and in the 70m sprint with a time of 10.31 seconds.
Year 6 Shot Put - new records in both boys' and girls' events. Abigail Y set a new record of 12.50m and Jed H set a new record of 14.90m.
Fredericka T in Year 3 set a new 50m sprint record with a time of 8.44 seconds and new records were also established in the new format hurdles events this year. In Year 3 Riya and Adi, in Year 4 Raunaq and Taha, in Year 5 Jada and Feranmi and in Year 6 Ryeesa and Kai established the records for this new event format.
Our Year 3 parents shone in the parents' races, with Mr. Sawant (Aditiya's dad) and Ms Haq (Zayd's mum) crossing the line first in two exciting parents' races over 50m.
On Friday morning in our Pre-Prep Sports Day our Year 1 and 2 pupils showed what a talented bunch they are with some super skills on the skills stations and excellent running on the track. This year our Year 2s demonstrated their hurdling skills too. In the afternoon it was Nursery and Reception classes who took to the field where, supported by staff and our Year 5 sports leaders, they were encouraged to try all the events with great enthusiasm. Both Sports Days ended with the traditional 'tug o' war' parents' event where parents pull for their child's house. This fun event is always well supported with over thirty parents on each side pulling for the house team. This year honours were even with Windsor parents winning in the morning and Cambria parents winning in the afternoon.
Sports Day overall results
Foundation Stage Sports Day - Windsor Champions
Pre-Prep Sports Day - Cambria Champions
Prep Sports Day - Windsor Champions
Year 3 - 6 Inter-house sports cup (awarded to the winning team for inter-house matches played throughout the year) - Windsor Champions
A real sense of community was evident at all our Sports Days, with Year 5 pupils and Old Helenians participating as sports leaders to run events, parents helping as judges, our staff supporting the pupils and the PA keeping everyone refreshed! Thank you to everyone involved.
Summer School
Due to the overwhelming demand for summer school places this year, additional places are now available as follows:
Lower School Summer school (Nursery - Y1) - 2 places available
Upper School Summer School (Y2) - 2 places available
Upper School Summer School (Y3 - 6) - 7 places available
Booking forms must be completed and returned as soon as possible. The booking form is available here.
Lower School Development
As you are all aware we have our very exciting Lower School project commencing on Saturday 7th July, with our current Nursery and Reception buildings being replaced. Please note that the Lower School will be completely closed after Friday 6th July thus if you have any queries please do contact Upper School. Holiday Club and Summer School for Lower School pupils will be located in the Upper School throughout the summer. Please note that on Friday 6th July, Funtasia After School Club will be held at Upper School for ALL pupils, including Nursery, Reception and Year 1.
Posted on: 22/06/2018Weekly News - Friday 22nd June 2018
We have enjoyed superb Sports Days this week at all three sites. On Tuesday, our Ducklings had a wonderful afternoon of races, on their grassed area, followed by a lovely 'after party' organised by the parents.
On Wednesday, the Prep School Sports Day at Hillingdon Stadium saw children in Years 3 to 6 compete in a full range of track and field events and today children from Nursery to Year 2 have competed in their events on the track and field at Court Park.
As ever, the Sports Days have been the culmination of the year's sporting activities and it was really marvellous to see the Olympic and Paralympic values on display once again from the youngest to the oldest children. The children showed maturity, determination, perseverance, sportsmanship and real excellence throughout the events and there were some superb results, which we will report in full next week.
We would like to extend thanks to all of the parents who attended the Sports Days and most especially to the PA who provided refreshments at the Pre-Prep and Prep Sports Days.
Charity Assembly
Today the children in Years 3 to 6 heard from Meena Patel, the lady who co-ordinates the shipping of old St. Helen's College uniform to underprivileged children in India. Having visited India and identified the issues affecting these children, Meena was able to convey to our pupils just how lucky they are not to suffer from the same hardships. She was also able to show our pupils some photographs of Indian children wearing old St. Helen's College uniform, and a short clip of the children thanking our pupils.
Year 1/2 Summer Plays - Key Information For All Year Groups
The children in the Year 1 and Year 2 classes will be performing their Summer Concert plays at the Winston Churchill Hall in Pinn Way, Ruislip, on Thursday 28th June, at 1.30 p.m. (Y1) and 2.30 p.m. (Y2). Year 1 will be performing 'Hansel and Gretel' and Year 2 will be performing 'The Emerald Crown'.
The key arrangements are as follows.
The Dress Rehearsal will be on Wednesday 27th June. All children from Nursery to Year 4 will attend so that they can watch the Concerts. Please deliver your child(ren) to the Winston Churchill Hall on this date by 8.40 a.m. The children will return to school by coach. Please note that Year 5 will remain at school for normal lessons, as they are busy preparing for important exams later this year. However, if you have a child in Year 1 or 2 who has a sibling in Year 5, then please drop your Year 5 child at the Winston Churchill Hall by 8.40 a.m. too so that they may watch their sibling perform. The Year 5 siblings will also return to school by coach.
On the day of the concert, Thursday 28th June, Year 1 and 2 children will have lunch at school as usual and will be taken by coach to the Winston Churchill Hall in time for their performances.
Tickets are now available and are priced at £8 each. Parents should book tickets by following this link:
âhttps://sthelens.parentseveningsystem.co.uk/
If parents have children in both Year 1 and Year 2, you should buy tickets just for one of the shows and you will be able to watch both.
PA Summer Fete
Thank you to all parents who have been bringing in donations and volunteering time to help on stalls at the Summer Fete on Saturday 30th June. If you have not yet volunteered, please do return your slip to let your class teacher know when you will be able to help. Donations will continue to be most gratefully received throughout the week this week too. The Summer Fete is always a super event and we are looking forward to seeing you all there!
The Wizard of Oz
'The Wizard of Oz' will be performed by our Year 6 children at The Compass Theatre, Ickenham on Thursday 5th and Friday 6th July. Parents are permitted to take children out of school on Friday for the matinee performance and we would encourage you to do so if you can, so that the younger children can enjoy the performance and see the standard to which they will aspire by the time they reach Year 6! Please let us know if you plan to take your child(ren) out of school for the matinee performance.
Tickets are sold on a first come, first served basis so please do not delay - the Year 6 play is always of exceptionally high quality and it is lovely for pupils in the younger years to go and see it with their parents.
There are three performances:
Thursday 5th July 7.30 p.m.
Friday 6th July 2.00 p.m. matinee
Friday 6th July 7.30 p.m.
You may order tickets by following the link below.
http://www.hillingdontheatres.uk/index.php/events/wizard-of-oz/
Please note that, for copyright reasons, parents will not be allowed to take photographs or use video recording devices during the performances.
Cancer Research Relay for Life
The school will once again be supporting the Cancer Research Relay for Life this year and a letter has been sent home separately with the details of the fundraising activities being run by various year groups. The first, the Year 5 cake sale, will take place on Monday 25th. Amishi K (Year 6) is also going to be running an individual fundraiser: 'Guess The Number Of JellyBeans In The Jar'. There will be jars full of beans at Upper School and Lower School. Entries will be £1 each so please do allow your child to bring in £1 (or more) and have a guess!
School Bus
We would like to remind parents that, in September, we will be launching a school bus service which will run daily during term time.
The bus will be available to children in Years 2 to 6 and will run, initially, on a route from Ruislip through Ickenham and Hillingdon to school. You can see the exact route and timings, along with the booking form, here and these have also been published to the School Documents page of the website.
There will be limited places on the bus and these will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. We would therefore encourage parents to complete and return the booking form as soon as possible if you know that you will require a regular place on a certain day, or certain days, of the week. Subject to availability, it will also be possible to book places on an ad hoc basis from September, by telephoning the school office by 4 p.m. on the preceding day.
We have had several enquiries from parents about a school bus service, and we hope that the service will prove popular. If it does, then we may consider expanding the service to other areas/routes...so watch this space!
Posted on: 15/06/2018Weekly News - Friday 15th June 2018
Six of our keen Year 3 mathematicians visited Edge Grove Prep School this week to take part in an invitation maths challenge workshop. Throughout the morning the children took part in three team challenges, developing their mathematical skills and confidence. They explored topics such as fractions and probability, 3D shapes using nets and cubes and mental arithmetic. Our pupils demonstrated resilience and great team work to be successful in each of the challenges. Well done to all those who took part: Sulaiman M, Jena J, Arjan D, Zayd K, Ben L and Vidhit N.
Assemblies This Week
On Thursday, the children of Owls class presented a very touching assembly all about Fathers' Day. Every child had painted the most wonderful portrait of their daddy and we all admired the gallery! The children praised their dads with such warmth and love that there was not a dry eye in the hall. Happy Fathers' Day to all dads for this weekend.
On Friday, 4T encouraged us all to reflect on the core values of Christianity and of St. Helen's College with a thoughtful assembly in which they re-enacted four of the Christian parables. With some excellent performance skills, they reminded us that Jesus taught forgiveness and respect and that these are two of the core values of our school today. They re-visited the school's mantra of 'Ready, Respectful, Safe' and linked this to the qualities taught through Christianity. There was some beautiful singing as the year groups joined together to sing 'Cross Over The Road, My Friend' and 'The Water Of Life'. We were left feeling nourished and inspired to carry such important values forward in our everyday lives.
Sports News - Tennis, Rounders and Upcoming Sports Days
Terrific Tennis
After being crowned Borough tennis champions last week, our Year 5 and 6 tennis team travelled to Redbridge Sports Centre on Thursday to represent Hillingdon at the London School Games finals, part of the London Youth Games. All thirty two London boroughs were represented at the event and initially our team had to play 4 singles rubbers each time against schools from Barnet, Merton, Bexley, Richmond, Hackney and Islington. All the team played very well, winning 4 matches and drawing 2 matches to win the group and progress to the semi finals.
The semi final match, against a school from Westminster, was extremely close. Our boys narrowly lost their singles matches but our girls battled for every point to win their matches. As the teams were drawn 2 - 2, the number of points won were used to decide the winner and St. Helen's College missed out on going through to the final by just 1 point! The team then had to refocus to play off for the bronze medal position. Despite some great rallies, we were defeated by a strong team from Newham. The school should be incredibly proud of our tennis players; to finish in 4th place at the regional London finals is a terrific result. Many congratulations to Timi O, Rishi S-P, Ryeesa S and Zara S-P.
Rounders Round Up
Our A and B teams took on Oak Farm this week in a friendly rounders fixture. We played several matches which gave every child a chance to enjoy themselves and develop their skills. Honours were fairly even between the schools and it was lovely to see the sportsmanship on display. This was the final warm up match for our pupils before they take on the staff team in our annual staff v pupils match later this month.
Sports Days
Our Sports Days are fast approaching and letters with full details (published last week) are available on the links below. Please ensure that you read these carefully. Ducklings parents will receive information separately about the Ducklings Sports Day.
There are two letters for Pre-Prep Sports Day (N/R/Y1/Y2) - click here and here.
There are two letters for Prep Sports Day (Y3/Y4/Y5/Y6) - click here and here.
We still need sports leaders (ex pupils) and parent helpers. Please email Miss Walker at swalker@sthelenscollege.com if you are available to help.
Younger siblings will be allowed to leave school early on Wednesday (20th June) to go with parents to the stadium to watch Prep Sports Day. Each year group will have a specific pick-up time for younger siblings, as they will be released immediately after they have eaten lunch; these will be noted on class weekly guides. Please contact your class teacher to request permission to take your younger child out on Wednesday afternoon if you would like to do this. Please note that, once collected from school, your younger child will remain your responsibility throughout the afternoon.
Year 1/2 Summer Plays - Key Information For All Year Groups
The children in the Year 1 and Year 2 classes will be performing their Summer Concert plays at the Winston Churchill Hall in Pinn Way, Ruislip, on Thursday 28th June, at 1.30 p.m. (Y1) and 2.30 p.m. (Y2). Year 1 will be performing 'Hansel and Gretel' and Year 2 will be performing 'The Emerald Crown'.
The key arrangements are as follows.
The Dress Rehearsal will be on Wednesday 27th June. All children from Nursery to Year 4 will attend so that they can watch the Concerts. Please deliver your child(ren) to the Winston Churchill Hall on this date by 8.40 a.m. The children will return to school by coach. Please note that Year 5 will remain at school for normal lessons, as they are busy preparing for important exams later this year. However, if you have a child in Year 1 or 2 who has a sibling in Year 5, then please drop your Year 5 child at the Winston Churchill Hall by 8.40 a.m. too so that they may watch their sibling perform. The Year 5 siblings will also return to school by coach.
On the day of the concert, Thursday 28th June, Year 1 and 2 children will have lunch at school as usual and will be taken by coach to the Winston Churchill Hall in time for their performances.
Tickets are now available and are priced at £8 each. Parents should book tickets by following this link:
âhttps://sthelens.parentseveningsystem.co.uk/
If parents have children in both Year 1 and Year 2, you should buy tickets just for one of the shows and you will be able to watch both.
Posted on: 8/06/2018Weekly News - Friday 8th June 2018
We are delighted to announce that, in September, we will be launching a school bus service which will run daily during term time.
The bus will be available to children in Years 2 to 6 and will run, initially, on a route from Ruislip through Ickenham and Hillingdon to school. You can see the exact route and timings, along with the booking form, here and these have also been published to the School Documents page of the website.
There will be limited places on the bus and these will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. We would therefore encourage parents to complete and return the booking form as soon as possible if you know that you will require a regular place on a certain day, or certain days, of the week. Subject to availability, it will also be possible to book places on an ad hoc basis from September, by telephoning the school office by 4 p.m. on the preceding day.
We have had several enquiries from parents about a school bus service, and we hope that the service will prove popular. If it does, then we may consider expanding the service to other areas/routes...so watch this space!
Singing Competitions
We were treated to two quite fantastic competitions at school this afternoon. The standard of singing at both the Middle School and Upper School Singing Competitions was really wonderful and our visiting judge was most impressed! We would like to extend congratulations to every child who entered the competitions and especially to those who delighted us with their singing today.
4A Assembly - Flatford Mill
Well done to 4A, who confidently presented a fun and interesting assembly today about their recent residential trip to Flatford Mill. We were all interested to see the beautiful surroundings and buildings in which they stayed, and to hear about the many exciting and educational activities they undertook. The children spoke with passion and great expression and no doubt the Year 3s cannot wait to follow in their footsteps next year!
Mrs. Drummond - A Founding Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching
We are delighted and proud to inform you that Mrs. Drummond has been appointed a Founding Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching.
The Chartered College of Teaching has been established to improve the quality of education for children and young people by supporting teachers, championing great teaching and raising the status of the profession, with a professional role comparable to the Law Society, General Medical Council and Royal Institute of British Architects. To be appointed a Founding Fellow is a great honour for Mrs. Drummond (and for the school!) and we know that she will be a leading light in the development of the CCT into the pre-eminent professional body for the promotion of excellence in British education.
In Mrs. Drummond’s appointment letter, the appointments committee wrote, ‘Fellowship is an honour and a mark of your achievements and commitment to the teaching profession. We were impressed by the strength of all applications and in particular your experiences and what you would bring to the Fellowship as a Founder.’
Many congratulations to Mrs. Drummond, for whom this honour is so well-deserved.
World Environmental Day
The children have been very environmentally aware this week as we have undertaken several activities linked to World Environmental Day. There was an assembly to introduce the day and all children have been busy decorating their handprints and writing their pledges to beat plastic pollution. In addition, our Eco Reps have been out litter picking in Court Park.
Tennis Borough Champions
Many congratulations to our Y5 and Y6 tennis teams, who took part in the Borough Tennis Tournament this week and were crowned Champions! They were able to match the achievement of Year 3 and 4 who were also crowned Borough Champions last month.
The event, held at Tripletts Community Tennis Centre, was attended by 12 teams from schools across the borough. Each team was made up of two boys and two girls and St. Helen's were able to field three teams as tennis is such a popular sport at school, with many pupils playing to a good standard. Each player in the team played a singles rubber in each match. In a fantastic display of tennis, all three of our teams came through the group stages to reach the quarter finals. Our A team progressed to the semi finals after beating Hayes Park school and in their quarter final, our C team beat our B team to reach the semi final to play our A team! Everyone played very well but the A team prevailed to reach the final to play Dr. Tripletts school. Our A team played consistently and confidently in the final to win 3 - 1. The team will now go forward to the London School Games Regional finals to represent Hilingdon against other London boroughs.
Thank you to all the parents who supported the team from the side lines and well done to all our players: Timi, Rishi, Ryeesa, Zara, Max, Aditya, Amishi, Hebe, William, Amrit, Grace, Zoe. You can see some photos from the event in the gallery.
Rounders
This week our rounders team played St. Andrew's School in a friendly match. Our team took some great catches and struck the ball well when batting to win the first innings 4.5 to 3.5 and the second innings 5 to 4. Team members were: Abigail, Ionie, Amishi, Zara, Ryeesa, Amrit, Rishi, Timi, Jed and Lincoln.
Sports Days
Our Sports Days are fast approaching and letters with full details are available on the links below. Please ensure that you read these carefully.
Ducklings parents will receive information separately about the Ducklings Sports Day.
There are two letters for Pre-Prep Sports Day (N/R/Y1/Y2) - click here and here.
There are two letters for Prep Sports Day (Y3/Y4/Y5/Y6) - click here and here.
We need parent helpers for both Sports Days. Please email Miss Walker at swalker@sthelenscollege.com if you are available to help, letting her know on which day(s) you are available.
The Wizard of Oz
'The Wizard of Oz' will be performed by our Year 6 children at The Compass Theatre, Ickenham on Thursday 5th and Friday 6th July. Parents are permitted to take children out of school on Friday for the matinee performance and we would encourage you to do so if you can, so that the younger children can enjoy the performance and see the standard to which they will aspire by the time they reach Year 6! Please let us know if you plan to take your child(ren) out of school for the matinee performance.
Tickets are sold on a first come, first served basis so please do not delay - the Year 6 play is always of exceptionally high quality and it is lovely for pupils in the younger years to go and see it with their parents.
There are three performances:
Thursday 5th July 7.30 p.m.
Friday 6th July 2.00 p.m. matinee
Friday 6th July 7.30 p.m.
You may order tickets by following the link below.
http://www.hillingdontheatres.uk/index.php/events/wizard-of-oz/
Please note that, for copyright reasons, parents will not be allowed to take photographs or use video recording devices during the performances. â
Year 1/2 Summer Plays - Key Information For All Year Groups
The children in the Year 1 and Year 2 classes will be performing their Summer Concert plays at the Winston Churchill Hall in Pinn Way, Ruislip, on Thursday 28th June, at 1.30 p.m. (Y1) and 2.30 p.m. (Y2). Year 1 will be performing 'Hansel and Gretel' and Year 2 will be performing 'The Emerald Crown'.
The key arrangements are as follows.
The Dress Rehearsal will be on Wednesday 27th June. All children from Nursery to Year 4 will attend so that they can watch the Concerts. Please deliver your child(ren) to the Winston Churchill Hall on this date by 8.40 a.m. The children will return to school by coach.
On the day of the concert, Thursday 28th June, Year 1 and 2 children will have lunch at school as usual and will be taken by coach to the Winston Churchill Hall in time for their performances.
Tickets are now available and are priced at £8 each. Parents should book tickets by following this link:
âhttps://sthelens.parentseveningsystem.co.uk/
If parents have children in both Year 1 and Year 2, you should buy tickets just for one of the shows and you will be able to watch both.
Summer Holiday Club Bookings Now Open
The booking form for Holiday Club is now available on the School Documents page of the website. Forms should be completed and returned to school by Friday 22nd June please.
Class Arrangements for 2018-19
We are pleased to announce the classes and staffing arrangements for the academic year 2018-19, as follows:
Robins class will become Kingfishers with Ms Matthews
Wrens class will become Owls with Miss Malik
Kingfishers class will become 1HC with Mrs. Hunt and Miss Cooper
Owls will become 1J with Miss Joiner
1HC will become 2B with Mr. Bustard
1S will become 2H with Mrs. Hussein
2B will become 3M with Mrs. McLaughlin
2H will become 3B with Mrs. Belvoir
3V will become 4KT with Mrs. Thompson
3T will become 4T with Mr. Tovell
4T will become 5A with Mrs. Allery
4A will become 5G with Mrs. Gilham
5W will become 6D with Miss Dear
5G will become 6M with Mr. McLaughlin
Later this term, pupils from Nursery to Year 4 will have an opportunity to visit their new classrooms and meet their new teachers. Year 5 children will visit the Nursery on that day since the Year 6 teachers will be at the Compass Theatre with the current Year 6; however, the Year 5 children do already know Mr. McLaughlin and Miss Dear and will have an opportunity to speak to them during the second half of term.
We also run a programme of 'Meet the Teacher' evenings for parents, at which we introduce the routines and expectations for the new year and at which you can meet your child's new teacher. These evenings will take place as follows.
New Ducklings, Nursery and Reception evenings are on Tuesday 3rd July.
New Year 1 and Year 2 evenings are on Thursday 28th June.
New Year 3 and Year 6 evenings will be on Thursday 13th September.
New Year 4 and Year 5 evenings will be on Thursday 20th September.
Please do make a note of these dates. Timings for meetings are available on the calendar.
We have already published the uniform and equipment list for next year to the School Documents page of the website. Second hand uniform is usually available to buy at the PA Summer Fete so you might wish to make a note of anything you will need before then.
Posted on: 25/05/2018Weekly News - Friday 25th May 2018
The week has seen two very successful and much-enjoyed residential trips, with pupils returning today from Chateau de la Baudonniere in France and from Flatford Mill in Suffolk. There has also, of course, been much going on here at school...
Wrens Assembly - Minibeasts!
Wrens performed a heartwarming 'minibeasts' assembly on Thursday. They expertly wove the St. Helen's College values into their singing and acting and showed not only that they know a lot about minibeasts but also that they understand the qualities you need to be a good friend.
3T Assembly - Shortenills Residential Trip
3T gave a splendid assembly this week all about their adventures on their first residential trip to Shortenills Environmental Centre this term. It was wonderful to see them reliving and sharing their favourite moments from their time away - including a new school record for putting on a duvet cover! They are already looking forward to next year's residential trip!
5G Assembly - Henry VIII
5G were able to educate their audience this week with an assembly all about the life and marriages of Henry VIII. A traditional town crier announced the news of Henry's marriages and we saw Henry as young Henry, middle aged Henry and old Henry! The Tudor costumes worn by the children helped bring to life Henry's court and we saw just what an impact his reign had on British history.
She Rallies Family Fun
On Wednesday the girls in Year 2 and 3 were invited to bring their mothers or grandmothers to take part in a She Rallies tennis event at Upper School. Our pupils put the grown ups through their paces in fun skills challenges and simple racket games, which culminated in an exciting 'Queen of the Court' game to see which family would be crowned the day's queens! Everyone had lots of fun, got some exercise and learnt some new skills.
FREE Tennis Fun Day
Tripletts Community Tennis Centre is holding a Great British Tennis Weekend fun day on Saturday 2nd June from 2 - 5 p.m. with activities for all the family. Click here to find out what's on offer and to book your place.
World Environmental Day - Tuesday 5th June 2018
As a school we are keen to get involved with World Environmental Day which falls this year on Tuesday 5th June, just after half term. The focus this year is #BeatPlasticPollution - if you can't reuse it, refuse it!
The children will be involved in many activities on this day (and throughout the week) to raise their awareness of the problems plastic can cause and what we can do to help. The children will also be involved in one 'plastic free' lesson, from outdoor activities to those that persuade people to use less plastic. Along with these activities your child will be given a paper handprint to take home which we will be asking them to decorate and write at least one (up to three) pledges of what they are going to do to reduce their use of plastic.
For further information please look at the World Environmental Day website. Many thanks, in advance, for your support.
Library News
The new Library Reading Challenges are proving very popular with children. If your child is in Year 2 or above and is not already taking part, please do encourage him or her to join in.
It would also be helpful if parents and pupils would make use of half term to find any overlooked library books, ready to return these to school after the break. The library will soon be launching a new award for the most organised class, which will be given to the class that looks after its books well and has least overdue books.
Uniform/Equipment
Some very organised parents have already asked the school about purchasing uniform or equipment for the next academic year. The uniform list has been updated and the latest version is now live on the website and available here. Please refer to this when buying new uniform or equipment.
PA Summer Fete
It’s that time of year when the PA are busy with “all hands on deck” preparations for our flagship event, the PA Summer Fete. We would like to ask you to save the date:
Date: Saturday 30th June 2018
Time: 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Where: Upper School playground
One of the aims of the PA is to encourage community, friendship and fun for our children, parents and guardians and the wider St. Helen's family. Over the years, the Summer Fete has been a great event where the school community has come together by bringing their ideas, giving their time and providing much enthusiasm.
The fete is organised by the PA committee which, at present, comprises ten full-time working mums. There is still room for more and we would welcome new interest!
We rely on your help for the fete, so please let us know if you can lend a hand. Even half an hour cover on a stall would be greatly appreciated. We would love to have you on board. We are looking for all sorts of help and we will be putting out requests for help in the next few weeks. However, there’s no time like the present so we are looking for immediate responses for the following:
We need you
At least 10 helpers from each year group to commit to helping on the day of the fete - we will start at 8 a.m. and finish clearing up at about 6 p.m. but you don’t need to do the whole stretch. If you can pledge help for all or part of the day, please do let us know. We need help on many levels such as running stalls, serving food, making tea and coffee, face painting, henna art, glitter tattoos, moving chairs and tables, putting marquees up, clearing litter, PA audio technicians and barbecuing. If you feel worried about taking on tasks yourself, why not get a team from your class together? Each class has a class rep, who will also be communicating with you.
We need donations
We would be really grateful for donations of the following (NO BOOKS PLEASE):
Nearly new, good condition soft toys - for the toy tombola
Good condition used / new school uniform – for the uniform stall
Brand new toys - for the raffle and toy tombola stalls
New items or unwanted gifts - for the raffle
If you work for a company who might like to donate anything to the fete please let us know.
Fete collection bins will be put out at the entrances and exits on all three school premises after half term (Ducklings, Lower School and Upper School) for you to bring your donations, so please have a good sort out over half term. We will empty the collection bins on a daily basis.
Tuck shop
We run a tuck shop where we sell drinks, sweets, ice creams and crisps. If you own a shop or can get reduced/discounted rates, we’d love to hear from you!
Food Stalls
As in previous years, we will be having a range of stalls at the fete to cater for a variety of tastes. To help us make this happen, we are looking for volunteers to provide the cuisine - this could be anything from African to Mexican, Italian to Thai. We will also be looking for volunteers to man these stalls. If you are able to provide food for a stall or would like to volunteer to serve on a food stall (even if it’s only for an hour), please do get in touch.
If you have any ideas or suggestion for the fete, we’d love to hear from you and embrace these. We can only put this event on with your help so please do get in touch. It's an event that’s really enjoyed by the children and the whole St. Helen's College community. Contact us: pa@sthelenscollege.com
Thank you in advance for all of your help and support to make this year's fete a really special event for everyone!
GDPR
Like many other organisations, St. Helen's College processes personal data and as such we are subject to the new General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) which come into force today. We have always taken great care to protect personal information. The new regulations require that all data must be protected to even higher standards than those required by previous legislation, so we have taken this opportunity to review the data flow in the school and our systems for keeping data secure. We have also taken advice from an external consultant to ensure that these systems are robust and GDPR-compliant. To see how we use and protect your personal data, please see our Privacy Notices which are published on the website here. To speak to someone about the Privacy Notices or to update the information we hold about you, please contact Mrs. Cargill, our Privacy Officer, at scargill@sthelenscollege.com.
Posted on: 18/05/2018Weekly News - Friday 18th May 2018
Pupils throughout the school had a fabulous day yesterday taking part in lessons outside of the classroom as part of Outdoor Classroom Day. There was excitement and enjoyment as the children tried new ways of learning ideas, concepts, topics and subjects. There are photographs of this and many of the other exciting events of this week on our Galleries page.
Black Park Nursery Visit
Our Nursery children enjoyed a super outing to Black Park this week, where they made their own 'bug hotels' as well as helping to stock up the huge one already in use. This was great fun as the children went on a scavenger hunt to try and find things to put in the tunnels. They also went on a mini beast hunt to try and find real mini beasts in their natural environment. Lifting logs and digging in the undergrowth was lots of fun and a great way to explore nature. This was a really exciting way to spend Outdoor Classroom Day.
The children also got to use the adventure playground, and discovered that climbing, swinging and sliding is so much fun and a brilliant way to do exercise. The children behaved beautifully during their outing and the teachers were very proud of them, particularly as there was a lot of walking to do!
5W Assembly
The pupils of 5W delighted us this morning with their account of their recent trip to the Isle of Wight. From the 3G swing, the 'leap of faith' and the visit to The Needles, our audience were captivated as the children performed with such confidence. It was clearly a truly memorable residential trip for the children - well done 5W.
A Royal Occasion
The school sites were an array of red, white and blue today as the pupils and staff prepared for the big day tomorrow with the forthcoming marriage of Prince Harry and Meghan. Street party style lunches were enjoyed and the children's crowns dazzled in the summer sunshine!
5* Award to Accent Team
Amidst the preparations for our street parties across the school today, Soula and her catering team had a spot inspection from a representative from the Food Standards Agency. The inspector was so impressed by everything and we are delighted to announce that we have once again achieved the highest star rating and maintained our 5 stars! Thank you to the Accent team for all their hard work, not only in giving the children such a superb street party royal lunch today but for their dedication and commitment all year round.
Upper School Parents' Evenings
It was lovely to see so many parents over our two Upper School parents' evenings this week. The new timings seemed to work really well and we hope that you all found it useful to talk with the teachers about your children and their work.
Borough Tennis Champions!
Many congratulations to our Year 3 and 4 tennis teams, who took part in the Borough tournament held at Tripletts Community Tennis Centre this week. Tennis is such a popular sport at St. Helen's College that we were able to field three teams and all of our players performed well in some very competitive matches. Our C team and A team won all their matches in the group stages to proceed to the quarter final stages. The C team played very well but were defeated by Hillingdon School, but our A team defeated St. Andrew's to meet Dr. Tripletts in the semi-final - a match they won to reach the final to face Hillingdon. Eli played first and narrowly lost 10 - 9, Daniel then won 10 - 2, Catherine won 10 - 4 and Amar won 10 - 6 for the team be crowded Borough Champions! The team will now go forward to represent the London Borough of Hillingdon at the Crystal Palace School Games on 5th July. Miss Walker, who also organised the event for over 20 teams from across the Borough, said, 'I'm delighted with the way all our teams played; they showed great determination but also good sportsmanship and they were a credit to the school'. Well done to all of the players who took part: Aditya 3V, Samir 3T, Shaina 4T, Fredericka 3V, Patrick 4A, Harry 4T, Grace 4A, Lily 4T, Eli 4T, Daniel 4A, Catherine 4T and Amar 3T.
Mother and Daughter 'She Rallies' Tennis Taster Session
Next Wednesday after school we will be opening our doors to our Year 2 and 3 girls and their mums to come and try some tennis together. The fun taster session will take place in the Upper School playground on our mini tennis courts from 4 - 5 p.m. and will include lots of fun games and challenges for mothers and daughters to try. 'She Rallies' is a programme championed by Judy Murray to create opportunities for women and girls of all ages and experiences to be involved in tennis. Last year Miss Walker was invited by Judy Murray to become a 'She Rallies' ambassador. All our Year 2 and 3 mothers and their daughters are invited to come along. There is no need to book or to bring any equipment - just turn up wearing some trainers and something comfortable to move around in!
Tag Rugby Tournament
Our Year 5 mixed tag rugby team took part in the local district tournament this week held at Whitehall School. We played matches against Hillingdon, Oak Farm and St. Bernadette's, winning against Oak Farm. Thank you to all of the parents who came to support the team.
North Hillingdon Methodist Church Spring Fair
The North Hillingdon Methodist Church will be holding their Spring Fair this weekend. Parents may wish to take children along; there will be a variety of stalls and you can watch the royal wedding on the big screen too! Their flyer is here.
Mini Monets Art Classes
It may seem early to be thinking about the long summer holiday, but if your son or daughter is a budding artist and you are looking for something to keep them occupied, you might be interested in the summer art camps run in Beaconsfield by Mini Monets. Full details are available here.
Parking
Please would Upper School parents refrain from parking along Parkway. This causes unnecessary annoyance to our neighbours and we will be unable to continue running the 'drop and go' system if cars continue to park along the road on the opposite side to the school. Please pull up in the designated 'drop and go' zones only, or use the Court Park car park.
Posted on: 11/05/2018Weekly News - Friday 11th May 2018
The children of Kingfishers Class educated and entertained us with an assembly about the history and traditions of 'May Day' this week. There was some superb singing, morris dancing and even maypole dancing! This was a vibrant and colourful assembly to celebrate those days of sunshine which we hope will be plentiful over the next few months. Well done indeed, Kingfishers. You can see photographs on our Galleries page.
Cancer Research Relay for Life
Today is 'Relay Friday' and we have launched Relay for Life to the children at school in assemblies. St. Helen's College teams have taken part in this special event for many, many years now, following the battles of dear colleagues against cancer and the losses of much loved family members, colleagues and friends to this merciless disease. Today we wore Relay for Life colours and explained to the children what the event is all about and why we will be working to raise money for this cause.
If you would like to find out more information about the event itself, and perhaps join the St. Helen's College team or sponsor us, please follow the link below. We would be delighted to welcome parents, children and extended family members to our team!
http://relay.cancerresearchuk.org/site/TR?fr_id=1850&pg=entry
Royal Wedding Celebrations
Next Friday we are encouraging the children in Ducklings, Lower School and Upper School to come to school dressed in red, white and blue (no football tops please). Ducklings and Lower School children may wish to make a crown at home to wear on the day.
We will be celebrating the upcoming nuptials with a street party themed picnic lunch. (Ducklings children should supply lunch as normal).
Junior Language Challenge
There are now just three weeks to go in this year's Junior Language Challenge first round. If your child is taking part, please encourage them to put on a final push - all is still to play for and we hope that some of our pupils will manage to secure a place in the semi final!
More Music Results!
We are pleased to announce an additional music examination result:
Piano
Reece G Grade 1 Pass
Well done Reece!
Reminder - Holiday Club Bookings
We would like to remind parents that bookings for the May half term Holiday Club are now open. The booking form is available on the Documents page of the website and the deadline for bookings is next Friday, 18th May.
Summer School 2018
Bookings are now open for this year's Summer School, which will take place from 20th to 24th August. The themes for this year are 'On The Farm' for children currently in Nursery - Year 1, and 'Under The Sea' for children currently in Year 2 - Year 6. The Year 2 - Year 6 Summer School will take place at Hillingdon Outdoor Activity Centre. Both Summer Schools will include a programme of fun and exciting activities for the children. Full details and the booking form are available here.
PA Quiz Night - Cancelled
Sadly, the PA Quiz Night (which was scheduled for tomorrow, Saturday 12th May) has been cancelled due to lack of interest. We are very sorry that this event will not go ahead and we urge parents to support the PA's events wherever you can; the committee work so hard to put on events to bring our community together and it is such a shame that parents won't enjoy the feeling this year of 'beating the teachers'!
Tax-Free Childcare Accounts/Childcare Vouchers
If you are using a tax-free childcare account to pay the school, please email our Finance Office at finance@sthelenscollege.com as soon as possible to let them know the account reference number. This will make it much easier for the school to locate your payments and allocate them correctly to your account.
We are aware that there is currently some confusion over whether parents may use a tax-free childcare account (or childcare vouchers) to pay for school fees after their child's 5th birthday.
As St. Helen's College is not an Ofsted registered school (because we are regulated by the Department for Education under the Independent Schools Inspectorate), we do not currently accept childcare vouchers or tax-free childcare account payments towards school fees after a child's 5th birthday. However, the school is currently taking independent legal advice on this issue and if there are to be any changes, we will let parents know as soon as possible.
You may continue to use childcare vouchers and tax-free childcare accounts to pay for Breakfast Club, After School Club and Holiday Club provided by the school on the school premises, throughout your child's time at St. Helen's College.
School Fee Plan/Third Party Providers
If you are using School Fee Plan or any other third party provider to pay your school fees, please ensure that the Finance Office knows this, so that they are able to correctly match payments received to your account. You can email the Finance Office at finance@sthelenscollege.com.
Posted on: 4/05/2018Weekly News - Friday 4th May 2018
Welcome back to our Year 5 pupils, who have spent the week on the Isle of Wight where they have been busy undertaking coastal studies alongside all sorts of exciting, fun and adventurous activities. We are sure they will all enjoy a well-deserved rest over the bank holiday weekend and will sleep well! You can see photographs of their week on the Galleries page.
EYFS Development at Lower School
We are very excited, after receiving the long-awaited planning permission, to be able to announce formally that over the summer holidays the Nursery and Reception buildings at Lower School will be replaced with new, state of the art facilities. Our new buildings will enrich the experiences of the pupils and will enable the children to have greater access to the outdoor learning environment. This is a project which has been in the planning for some time and I am sure that all of our families and staff will welcome the addition of these superb facilities. I trust that parents now understand our need for the Lower School children to finish school slightly ahead of the Ducklings and Upper School pupils this term, to enable our contractors adequate time to complete the project ready for the new academic year. A 3D view of the plans is shared with you on the Galleries page - this gives you a general idea of what the new buildings will look like.
Lower School parents should please note that Holiday Club for the summer holiday will start on 11th July (half day), which is the day that term ends for the Upper School.
Robins Assembly
The Robins Assembly this week was a wonderful testament to the values that we hold dear at St. Helen’s College. The children demonstrated how ‘to have a friend we need to be a friend’ through the analogy of filling buckets with all the wonderful values and character traits our children are developing. They certainly filled our buckets full of joy and pride as they spoke and sang with such confidence and clarity. Well done everyone!
Sports Success!
Our Year 6 golfers won the Borough Tri Golf Competition again this week, making it gold for St. Helen's College for 3 years running! They competed in eight different events, scoring points for every successful chip or putt. The team scored over 2000 points, which was an outstanding total. Congratulations to the team, which was made up of the same children who won the event last year as Year 5 pupils: Abigail Y, Lily F, Ryeesa S, Amishi K, Zara S-P, Veer B, Ethan V-B, Nirmit N, Lincoln B and Timi O.
Welfare News
The latest Welfare Newsletter has been posted to the School Documents page of the website and is available here. Please do take the time to read this as it contains important information about keeping your child safe and well over the summer.
May Half Term Holiday Club Bookings Now Open
The booking form for the May half term Holiday Club has now been posted to the School Documents page of the website and is available here. Please return completed booking forms by 18th May.
Co-Curricular Activities
We still have some places available for our Year 3 Athletics Club which takes place on a Friday from 3.30 - 4.30 p.m. If your child would like to join the club, please email Miss Lang at mlang@sthelenscollege.com. Places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis.
Posted on: 27/04/2018Weekly News - Friday 27th April 2018
It was lovely to see so many of you at our Month End Music Recital this afternoon. Congratulations to all of the children who performed with such grace, confidence and musicality.
Superb Music Results!
We are delighted to announce some fantastic music results for the exams taken recently, as follows. Very well done to all of these pupils for their hard work and many hours of practice!
Piano
5W Wenru G8 Distinction
4A Anaiya G3 Distinction
5W Mya G3 Merit
3T Samir G1 Pass
Singing
6D Maddy G2 Distinction
4T Esha G1 Merit
Guitar
â4A Jasmine G2 Merit
6D Jai G2 Pass
'Cello
3T Zayd G2 Pass
3V Vandan G1 Merit
4T Rhea Prep Pass
3T Anaiya Prep Pass
ANZAC Day
We were most proud that one of our Year 5 students, Luke, was asked to speak at the ANZAC (Australian, New Zealand Army Corps) remembrance service on Wednesday. Luke took part in the prayer service in Westminster Abbey and spoke in front of a full congregation including Prince William, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The day is a national holiday in New Zealand and Australia to mark those soldiers who lost their lives in World War 1. Luke gave a super presentation to Upper School children in today's assembly too. You can see photographs of Luke at Westminster Abbey on our Galleries page.
A Marathon Effort!
Huge congratulations to Mrs. Rooney, who ran the London Marathon last weekend for the first time. After months of training in the rain, wind and snow, there was an unexpected heatwave last weekend. It made the run very challenging, but Mrs. Rooney says that it was an incredible day that she will never forget. Thank you to all parents, staff and pupils for all the support and donations, which were so much appreciated.
Residential Trips
'Tis the season to be jolly with all our wonderful forthcoming residential trips. We wish all the Year 5 pupils and accompanying staff a great time next week as they depart on Monday to travel to the Isle of Wight for five days of adventurous and exciting activities!
Walk to School Week
We have had a hugely successful week of walking/scooting/cycling to school this week. Thank you to all of the families who have supported this healthy venture. It is so wonderful to hear that many of you are intending to make this a more regular way of arriving at school each day. Our JRSOs will of course be continuing to promote the initiative through our weekly 'Walk on Wednesday' sessions throughout the summer term.
Lower School Building Project
We are in the very last stages of finalising our plans for an incredibly exciting project which is due to be undertaken over the summer holidays - the refurbishment of our Nursery and Reception classrooms. We look forward to sharing further information with the community in due course.
Upper School Parents' Evenings
The next Parents' Evenings for children in Years 2 - 6 will take place at Upper School on Tuesday 15th May and Thursday 17th May. The online booking system is now open (link below) and operates on a first come, first served basis, so please book your appointments at your earliest convenience. Bookings will close the day before each parents' evening.
https://sthelens.parentseveningsystem.co.uk/
Term Dates
We have now published the term dates for 2019-2020. You can find them on the School Documents page of the website.
Registration Reminder
If you have a child who will be eligible for entry to the Nursery at 3+ in September 2019, or to Ducklings Kindergarten at 2+ in September 2019 (that is, a child born between 01.09.15 and 31.08.17), and you have not already registered him or her with us, then now is the time to do so! As the summer moves on, we will start the entry processes for September 2019 and siblings should be registered early to allow us to allocate priority sibling places. You may register online by completing the registration form at
https://www.sthelenscollege.com/257/registration-form.
If you have any questions about admissions, please contact Mrs. Smith in the school office.
Drop and Go - Upper School
Please note that if cars are parked on Parkway across from the school, then we are unable to operate drop and go in the mornings. Parents must park in the car park and escort their children to the gate.
School Bus Service
From September, we will be trialling a morning school bus service. We are currently testing an initial route and will announce further details in due course.
Staff Vacancies
We are now recruiting for various positions. Please do take a look at https://www.sthelenscollege.com/274/join-the-team and, if you know anyone who may be interested in working with us, do encourage them to apply!
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