As we mark the Feast of the Epiphany, and on our return to school, we wish everyone in the St Peter’s community a Happy New Year 2024.

Mr R Cunningham
Headteacher

The autumn term at St Peter’s finished off with a very traditional focus on the celebration of Christmas.  After the Nativity Plays, which raised £120 in programme sales to go to a charity called Sophie’s Legacy which supports families with children in long-term hospital care, the school gathered at Sacred Heart and St Peter the Apostle for our Carol Service.  This was incredibly well attended with standing room only, and the retiring collection of £500 was donated to Action for Children, whose Christmas campaign seeks to house and feed families who find themselves without accommodation at Christmas.  After turkey and all the trimmings served to over 400 pupils, the final afternoon of school brought the term to a close with a Christmas Liturgy.  After all the public events of the final fortnight, and the festivities along the way, it is always a delight just to have pupils and staff gathered in quiet and reflective worship before setting out on their Christmas break. 

The whole community of St Peter’s Catholic Primary School wish each and every one of you a Happy Christmas and  prosperous New Year – please remember to keep our school, its pupils, staff and families in your prayers over the Christmas season and into 2024.

Mr R Cunningham
Headteacher

It was time for singing, dancing and acting with mountains of audience participation this week as The Treehouse Theatre Company visited St Peter’s once again for our annual pantomime.

Galloping their way through 2 performances and several role and costumes changes (for a company of just four actors!), and with the help of a few pupil actors and a very receptive audience, the show was a roaring success and enjoyed by all.

Mr R Cunningham
Headteacher

This week we have enjoyed wonderful Nativity Plays and Liturgies from our pupils in Years R, 1 and 2. As ever, the story of Advent and Christmas was brought to life with song, dance and acting. Over the course of 6 performances in total, several hundred parents, carers and extended family members were able to watch our traditional Nativity Plays and bring themselves into the Advent season with joy and warmth.

Thank you to all the staff who make these shows possible each year, and well done to all of the pupils.

Mr R Cunningham
Headteacher

The parish church of The Sacred Heart and St Peter the Apostle was filled with 370 children and over 40 staff as pupils from Years 1 to 6 celebrated the St Peter’s School Advent Service this week.  Music, scripture and acting brought the story of Advent to life for the children, and Fr Jeremy and Fr James led a reflection using a tea spoon! 

As we move ahead through Advent, St Peter’s Catholic Primary School warmly invites everyone in our local community  to our Carol Service at the Church of The Sacred Heart and St Peter the Apostle on Tuesday 12th December 2023.  The Carol Service begins at 6:30pm, is open to everyone even if they do not have a family child at St Peter’s, and will last for approximately 1 hour. 

This celebration will move the story on from the Annunciation and the Visitation to take us closer to the celebration of the birth of Christ.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Mr R Cunningham
Headteacher

Now, I know we are not even in Advent yet, but the pupils at St Peter’s have been busy collecting items of goodwill to send to children around the world in areas of conflict and hardship.  Bringing together essentials and treats, from toiletries to toys, we filled over 50 shoeboxes to give to The Samaritan’s Purse “Operation Christmas Child”. 

Pictured with me here are Clementine and Noah from Year 1, the year group that has been behind this whole-school initiative.  Because these care packages will be travelling many miles across the world, they needed to be packed and sent away in good time for delivery by Christmas.  (I got to the end of this piece with only mentioning the word Christmas twice in November!)

Mr R Cunningham
Headteacher

Pupils at St Peter’s have been donating money to this year’s Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal.

This is always well-supported in school, with the 2022 collection amounting to £435 – that’s a pound per pupil in honour and remembrance of the fallen.

Pictured here are Michael and Sebastian in Year 3 proudly wearing their poppies in front of the library display at the heart of St Peter’s.

Mr R Cunningham
Headteacher

It’s all out and about overnight at St Peter’s at the moment, as a range of pupils embark on residential visits.  The Year 5 classes are each spending 2 nights at the Sustainability Centre in Clanfield. As part of this trip, they learn about sustainable farming, water and energy use, and take part in a range of outdoor games, challenges and activities.  The pupils in Year 5, meanwhile, have spent a whole week away at Fairthorne Manor in Botley, an outward bounds centre run by the YMCA provides children with challenging activities to stretch mind and body.  These include climbing, abseiling, kayaking, paddle boarding, orienteering and, of course, a final night camp fire and singalong!

None of these trips are possible without the great commitment and support given by staff who spend time away from their own families and homes to give children these overnight experiences lasting between 3 and 5 days. That is why these trips are also planned to take place in the run-up to a half-term break, allowing time for people to catch up on sleep and lough through the muddy laundry that the children inevitable bring home with them.

Mr R Cunningham
Headteacher

We’ve had a flurry of fundraising recently, which the St Peter’s community showing its usual generosity.  The pupils raised £330 for CAFOD on 6 October with their “Wear it Bright” non-uniform day, and on that same afternoon a team of Year 6 children raised £194 for the Rowans Hospice with a cake sale.  Not to be left out, the St Peter’s staff used our recent Inset day on 29 September to have our annual Macmillan Cancer Support coffee morning, raising £99 in donations for cakes and treats that colleagues brought in.

In the coming days, the Royal British Legion will launch its annual Poppy Appeal.  By coincidence this week, we received a thank you card from the local RBL branch for the £435 that St Peter’s pupils raised during the 2022 Poppy Appeal.

Even with tough financial times faced by many in our communities, such support for a variety of causes is greatly appreciated, and a testament to the generosity of the St Peter’s families, pupils and staff.

Thank you all very much

Mr R Cunningham
Headteacher