Dear all,

This is my first blog post as the RE Curriculum lead of St. Peter’s, and I very much look forward to using this blog as a means of updating you on St. Peter’s spiritual and religious journey across the course of the academic year.

Upon reflection, as a Catholic School, we had thoroughly enjoyed and immersed ourselves within the religious celebrations and festivities that took place during Autumn term 2, towards the end of 2018. The generosity and gratitude demonstrated throughout our entire school community was heart-warming to experience. I would like to congratulate all of the children and staff who took part in the KS2 Carol concert at Sacred Heart church. The festive spirit was certainly spread to all members of the congregation, who particularly enjoyed the children’s musical performances. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all those who had generously purchased cards at the church – all donations shall support the continual development of the St. Peter’s prayer garden. Furthermore, it was clear to see how the communal spirit had continued throughout the school’s Christmas dinner day. The children had a fantastic time with their friends, and their behaviour and manners were exceptional. Above all, I would like to say a huge thank you to all of the kitchen staff, parent volunteers and governor helpers who had enabled the Christmas dinner sittings for KS1 and KS2 to operate so efficiently.

St. Peter’s has had an excellent start to the academic year 2018-19. Our strong results from the previous Section 48 Validation has enabled the school to stand in good stead as it makes continual progress as a religious establishment. Recent changes surrounding the assessment of Religious Education by the local Diocese has enabled St. Peter’s to develop further connections between religious scripture and how the Word of God influences the lives of modern day Christians. Pupils have enjoyed the opportunities for discussion and debate that this has opened up – in the context of each RE unit of study, children are now regularly given an opportunity to think critically and theologically about various choices, actions and events that may take place in the world around them. After half term, we look forward to continuing our Other Faiths unit, before moving on to Lent – so far, students have particularly enjoyed exploring a variety of different religions and places of worship. We are proud of our students for the respect they have demonstrated when learning about the practices and beliefs of various religious groups.

Finally, I would like to inform you of an exciting update for 2019. We have been delighted to see the breaking of ground as the project of our new school building begins! Already, meetings have taken place between our school council representatives, in order to select a name for the building that strongly reflects our school’s Mission Statement, religious values and spiritual ethos. We appreciate the co-operation of all students and staff throughout the completion of this project, and look forward to providing further updates soon.

I wish you all a peaceful and restful half term,

Miss Honeywell