Christmas seems like a long time ago, but having worked our way through January it is time to reflect on the month of February as a moment of calm before Lent begins. As we settle into February, I continue to be proud of the warmth, enthusiasm, and faith-filled spirit our children bring to school each day. This month offers us a welcome pause before the season of Lent begins—a chance to reflect on God’s goodness and prepare our hearts for the journey ahead. In school we will be exploring themes of kindness, prayer, and service, and I encourage families to join us in these small but meaningful acts of love.  This year Ash Wednesday falls in half term, so we will not be able to do a service in school to mark this solemn day.  When return for the second half of the spring term however, through RE lessons and Celebrations of the Word the pupils will be learning about repentance, renewal, and God’s love. 

In the six weeks that we have been back at school since Christmas, the pupils have shown excellent commitment to their learning and school life.  The Times Tables Rock Stars relaunch day was a great event to promote the learning of maths at home, and the visit of former RAF Senior Aircraftman and Invictus Games competitor Luke Delahunty provided activity, enthusiasm and inspiration for our pupils.

Our school site, and especially the carpark, remains a busy place at the start and end of each day.  It is important therefore to follow a few simple steps to keep everyone safe:

• Please do not allow your children to walk across car parks without adult supervision – if dropping off at breakfast club adults are expected to accompany their children right up to the entrance door.
• Please do not allow children to ride bikes or scooters on the school grounds – our pedestrian paths are narrow with moving traffic alongside them, and we do not want bikes or scooters wobbling into oncoming vehicles.
• Please stick to the site speed limit of 5 miles per hour.
• Please do not leave children to wait without supervision outside the school gates before 8:30am when the playgrounds are opened.
• Please only use the reserved disabled parking space if you hold a proper blue badge.  After Easter we hope to be able to provide additional disabled parking pays and we would expect drivers to follow the same rules in school as they would in public in respecting the importance of these vital spaces.

Abiding by these simple practices will makes the school site safe for all users, and make the start and end of each school day less stressful for everyone.

I hope that you are all able to enjoy a restful half term break, not forgetting the St Peter’s Inset day on Friday 13th February.  We look forward to welcoming all the children back to school for the start of spring term 2 at the usual time of 8:45am on Monday 23rd February.

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher

Well done to all pupils and staff who took part in our first Times Tables Rock Stars day.

A great day was had by all to promote online maths learning. Remember all pupils have a log in to play Times Tables Rock Star, Sumdog or Numbots at home. Thank you to Mrs Stewart who leads Maths in St Peter’s and gave us the idea of really getting into the Times Table Rock Stars theme!

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher

In the first three weeks of the spring term, pupils at St Peter’s have been very busy across the wider curriculum.  In the Reception Year the children were very excited to welcome visitors including a doctor, nurse, veterinary nurse and paramedic into the classrooms. They asked some fantastic questions and showed great curiosity about the important work these professionals do.

Year 3 have started a new music topic on samba. The pupils have learnt about where samba music comes from and what instruments they will be using over the term to learn how to play samba music. The children have already had the opportunity to play some beats on the instruments and can’t wait for what they will learn next.

Year 5 were visited by Katy Sexton MBE, a former Olympic swimmer for Team GB. Katy spoke about her achievements in swimming and how she got into the sport. She then spoke to the pupils about water safety ready for their class swimming sessions to begin.  Katy showed the classes what to do if they find someone struggling in the water, and what to do if they ever found themselves in trouble in open water.

Thank you to the St Peter’s staff for organising these great learning opportunities, and to the visitors who give of their time and expertise to teach our children.

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher

Whilst the Church is now in ordinary time, at St Peter’s that means a return to our usual routines of worship in school.  This week, pupils in Year 2 shared a celebration of the Word with their families, whilst pupils in Year 6 Penguin Class celebrated the sacrament of reconciliation.  The liturgical year has its cyclical motion, with times of great activity and times of regularity.  At St Peter’s, we work hard through weekly whole school Celebration of the Word, daily classroom prayers, and scheduled year group services to ensure that our faith is nurtured, encouraged and strengthened throughout the full school year.  With this in mind, please keep the pupils, families and staff of St Peter’s Catholic Primary School in your prayers during 2026.

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher

St Peter’s was able to raise £566.74 through donations made at their Carol Service and the selling of programmes at their Nativity plays in December.  The money raised will be donated to Motiv8, a life-changing youth support charity and organization operating in Portsmouth, Fareham, Gosport, Havant that helps young people aged 9-25 and their families facing multiple, complex barriers. It provides one-to-one mentoring, youth hubs, and targeted support to reduce the risk of anti-social behaviour, crime, and disengagement from education. Thank you to all who contributed to these collections.

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher

As we returned to school on Monday 5 January 2026, the pupils at St Peter’s gathered for a whole school Celebration of the Word. The focal point of our worship was this nativity scene pictured below. I explained to the children that this porcelain crib, which I inherited from my grandmother when she died in 2006, is always the last item of Christmas decoration to be packed away in our house, staying on show right up to the Feast of the Epiphany.

I drew the school’s attention to the fact that in all the noise, colour and activity of Christmas, and indeed even compared to some of the intricate and decorative traditional Nativity scenes and paintings, the simplicity of this crib speaks volumes to remind us of what truly lies at the heart of the celebration. The power of the birth of Christ, and the message of love that it brings, lasts well after all the other trappings of the season have gone.

Wishing you all a peaceful and prosperous 2026.

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher

Our librarian Mrs Porter has excelled herself in preparing for the pupils two beautiful displays in the library to mark the Christmas season. Firstly, we see below a display the many names by which Jesus is know in both the Old and New Testaments.

Elsewhere in the library, we have a wonderful display highlighting some of the many picture books for younger children with a Christmas theme. Even when the school is shut over Christmas, local libraries will still be open for family visits (and maybe a bit of calming time!) over the festive period.

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher

On Tuesday 2 December the pupils from Years 1 – 6 packed out the church of Sacred Heart and St Peter the Apostle for our annual Advent Service. In a series of readings and hymns, the children were led from the prophecy of Jesus’ birth (Isiah 9: 2, 6-7) through the birth of Jesus foretold (Luke 1: 26-38) on to the journey to Bethlehem (Luke 2: 1-5). It is at this point that our story stopped so the children could focus on the season of Advent before Christmas.

Pictured above are the 370 children along with staff and volunteers listening to Fr James Lewis who led a reflection with a special guest appearance from our old friend Fr Jeremy Garrett which delighted the children.

Everyone is warmly invited to our Christmas Carol Service at the church of Sacred Heart and St Peter the Apostle at 6:30pm on Wednesday 17 December.

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher

Well done and thank you to our fabulous school choir which has started its seasonal commitments in the local area for Advent and Christmas.

The children’s choir sang at the switching on of the Waterlooville Christmas lights, and (pictured above) at the Waterlooville Christmas Fayre. They will perform to residents of Oaklands Care Home next week, and will be leading the singing at our Carol Service at 6:30pm on Wednesday 17 December at Sacred Heart and St Peter the Apostle church.

Enormous thanks go to Mrs Knight and Mrs Moore for the hard work they do to lead our choir in school.

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher

Congratulations to our pupils in Year 1 who coordinated the school-wide collection for the annual Operation Christmas Child appeal. Donations from throughout the school of toiletries, toys, stationery and treats were packed into decorated shoe boxes to be sent across the globe to children living in less fortunate circumstances.

Pictured here alongside pupils from Year 1 are Miss O’Connell who organised St Peter’s collection campaign, along with Mr and Mrs Whelan from Oaklands and two of the Sixth Form Leadership Team who orchestrated the combined efforts of both schools to help young people around the world for him these donations may be the only Christmas gift they receive. Thank you to all families who donated, and to the staff in St Peter’s and Oaklands for their continued support of the Samaritan’s Purse international relief charity.

Mr R Cunningham
Executive Headteacher