Dear Parents

Advent – All welcome in our Garden of Hope

During Advent, our families are welcome to use our Garden of Hope (at the front of the school building) for quiet prayer and reflection time during this very special season of preparation. You are welcome to use the Garden of Hope for reflection between 8:30-9am each day. This will be for private prayer and not a led prayer service. Please do hang a note of prayer on stars provided on our tree! Over the next week, you will see some changes to our Garden of Hope that will make this area of school a peaceful and inviting area to reflect and engage in private prayer. From time to time, our children may also lead us in prayer, and we will communicate this to you in good time.

Advent - Celebration of the Word

On Monday, all parents, families and parishioners are welcome to join us at 9:05am for our beginning of Advent Celebration of the Word. This will be a wonderful opportunity to reflect together as a school community and celebrate the joy and anticipation that Advent brings. An extra special time of hope and preparation this Year of Jubilee.

To help us mark the occasion, we kindly ask that children wear a purple top for the day if possible. Purple is the liturgical colour for Advent and reminds us of the themes of preparation and hope during this sacred season.

Kind Hearts, a hunger for justice

Fundraising and social action

To continue our pledge from this Jubilee Year to bring about a better, fairer world, we kindly ask for your support and donations with our reverse Advent Calendar. A flyer of information of what you may choose to donate was sent out to parents earlier this week.

Kind hearts, a thirst for knowledge, a hunger for justice

Musical Christmas events

A detailed letter of information was sent to parents earlier this week. At a glance, the dates concerned are below:
Please do sign up on the forms previously provided

A very nasty virus has really impacted on our attendance in school over the last two weeks. I hope that the children are now feeling better and over the worst of this and we see an upturn in our attendance back to our usual excellent standard next week.

Forming Christ-centred pilgrims of hope with kind hearts, questioning minds, a thirst for knowledge and a hunger for justice

Gifts from God

The following children have received a certificate in today’s Gifts from God assembly. Well done children!

(No Gifts from God this week due to our Jubilee assembly to all Catholic schools across the Arch Diocese)

Questioning minds

Dates for your diary – please keep an eye on the link below while dates are added:

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Stourbridge - Calendar 

Inset Days

Please note a further inset day has been added. As a Multi-Academy Company, Emmaus are able to use a 6th inset day for staff development and formation. The inset days for the rest of the academic year are as follows:

Friday 26th June

Friday 17th July – new date

Monday 20th July

As such, school will close for pupils for the summer break on Thursday 16th July at 3:15pm

Monday 1st December – 9am Whole school Advent assembly(all can wear purple) parents welcome
Wednesday 10th December – 9:10am Music and Mince Pies (parents invited)
Thursday 11th December – Christmas jumper day
Thursday 11th December – 5:30-6:30pm – Carols by Candlelight at OLAS
Monday 15th December – Reception Christmas performance
Wednesday 17th December – 1:30pm – Year 1 and 2 Nativity performance
Wednesday 17th December - 5:30pm - Year 1 and 2 Nativity performance
Friday 19th December – 9:05am – Whole school Advent Mass
Friday 19th December – Final day of term. School closes at 3:15pm – carols sung in the hall.

Have a great weekend

Mr Wilkes

Executive Principal