Dear Parents

It is lovely to see the snowdrops flowering in the park and the lighter mornings are most welcome – spring is nearly here!

Next week we will be sending out our bumper half-termly newsletter with lots of news updates. In the newsletter we will have a special feature about Mrs Anita Kourtis who is sadly retiring from her role as school librarian. We are delighted, however,  that she will be replaced by Miss Celeste Boekerink, a St James Alumnae, who is passionate about literature and has been working with Mrs Kourtis for the past two weeks taking over the library baton.

Next week is our STEAM Week and the Upper school will all be going to the Science Museum on Monday. Do make sure your child has a warm coat and a hat and gloves for travelling to the museum. There will be workshops and activities taking place during the week. Thank you to Mr Edwards for organising such an exciting week. I know the children will learn so much.

If you have not booked your tickets for the 50^th Birthday Celebrations on May the 2^nd, then please do so this weekend as they are going swiftly. Please note that this is a celebration that everyone is welcome to come to and we hope to see families and staff, past and present all there together.  The programme will include Shakespeare, Musical performances, sections form Vivaldi’s Gloria and a debut performance by the staff/parent choir.  School will be finishing at 11.30 am on this day to enable the children to rest in the afternoon in preparation for the evening performance. If your child is one of the performers, you will have had a message from the music or drama departments.  

As previously advertised, we are excited for the return of our Grandparents’ and Special Friends’ Afternoon, on Friday 14 February. This year, our theme will be ‘Love and Friendship’, and our pupils have been working hard on their performances. Welcome refreshments will be served in the Courtyard Café from 1.30 pm, with performances beginning at an earlier time of 1.50 pm to enable Year 6 to get to swimming on time.  The event will conclude at the end of the school day, around 3.15 pm, where you will be able to collect your children as we break for half-term. It was an amazing turn-out last year, and we hope to welcome many of you back. Tickets are limited to 2 tickets per family to ensure as many as able can be involved; if you would like to book a ticket for a Grandparent or Special Friend, please RSVP here: https://forms.office.com/e/WHHxMT022x

Please note that you will find a bulb in your child’s bag today for the bulb growing competition. This is following requests from parents for the school to provide the bulbs. If you have already started growing your own, then you can submit two for the competition. We will have two categories to enter – one for the school bulb and one for a home grown one!

Do note that the Courtyard Café will be open every day next week and that the parent art lesson will take place in there on Tuesday morning from 8:00 am.  

Have a happy and restful weekend.

Best Wishes

Mrs. Wyatt