Weekly News - Friday 6th September 2024

It has been wonderful to welcome the children back to school this week, and to get to know our new joiners too. There is such a happy, purposeful feeling all across the school and we are all very much looking forward to the year ahead! It has also been super to see so many parents in school this week at individual Early Years parent meetings, the Meet the Teacher evening at Upper School and the Year 2 coffee morning.

As we begin a new year, we would like to remind all parents of the importance of regular communication and of the best routes for this. Your class teacher is always your first port of call for any queries concerning your child, and we encourage you to keep in touch with them. Prompt, clear communication between school and home is crucial to enable the best care for your child and to support their progress most effectively. Email is usually a good way to contact your class teacher; they are also available at the end of the school day if you need a quick chat, and they will be happy to arrange a longer appointment should that be needed. If your class teacher is unable to assist for some reason, please feel free to contact a member of the Senior Leadership Team directly on the email addresses below:

Ducklings and Lower School queries - Mrs. Hunt at lhunt@sthelenscollege.com.
Upper School pastoral queries - Mr. McLaughlin at amclaughlin@sthelenscollege.com.
Upper School teaching and learning queries - Mr. Lewis at mlewis@sthelenscollege.com.
Co-Curriculum/sports queries - Mr. Harrington at lharrington@sthelenscollege.com.
Administration/admissions/communications/any other query - Mrs. Smith at susmith@sthelenscollege.com.

PA Welcome Event

The Parents' Association very much hope that all new families will come along to their Welcome Event on Saturday 14th September from 2 - 4 p.m. The event will take place in the Evans Hall at Upper School and is a lovely opportunity to meet the PA and other new families.

Eco News

SHC Achieves Eco-Schools Green Flag Award - With Distinction!

We were delighted to learn, over the summer, that St. Helen's College has again achieved our Eco-Schools Green Flag Award. Not only have we retained our award, but this time we have been awarded a Distinction for our eco work!

SHC Achieves Plastic Free School Status!

We have also now completed Objective 5 of the Plastic Free Schools Campaign and have been awarded Plastic Free Schools Status!

Plastic Free Schools is a pupil-led, ground-breaking programme that equips young people with the tools to understand the problems of single-use plastic, speak to politicians and eliminate unnecessary single-use plastic from their schools, for good. The children focused on eliminating plastic food packaging in school for this final step; sandwiches for trips will now be packaged using cardboard not cling film or other plastic snack wrapping.

We are so delighted to have achieved these goals, and would like to thank everyone involved for their hard work, especially the diligent and passionate Eco Team. 

New Upper School Bike Shed

Our hard working maintenance team have been very busy over the summer break, updating facilities and equipment across the school sites. At Upper School the children have been excited to see a beautiful new bike shed, an terrific addition to the school grounds.

The new shed has plenty of space to keep bikes, helmets and scooters tidy and dry. It also features eco 'living walls', areas dedicated to growing lavendar, strawberry plants and herbs for the school kitchen. Bikeability's Cycle To School week takes place from 23rd -27th September and is the perfect opportunity for pupils to get involved. Not only will the children benefit from fresh air and exercise before school, it also supports our important environmental work as an eco school. 

Fundraising Success 

Naiya (Year 5) has raised over £5000 for cancer support charity The Little Princess Trust!  Through a sponsored haircut, Naiya donated over 14 inches of her long locks, which will be made into wigs for children who have lost hair through cancer treatment or other conditions. Her efforts for this valuable cause have placed her in the charity's top 5% of fundraisers for July, an amazing achievement. Well done, Naiya!

 

 

 

Autumn Co-curricular Clubs

Booking for autumn term co-curricular clubs will go live on SchoolsBuddy today at 4 p.m. There are plenty of fun and exciting clubs for the children to get involved with, from sports and games to art, music and languages. The timetable can be found here. Please log into SchoolsBuddy for more information and to make your selection by Sunday night, when bookings will close. 

Music Lessons

A range of one-to-one music lessons are offered at school taught by our team of specialist music teachers, many of whom work professionally in the music industry.  From Reception children can learn the violin or the cello, and from Year 2 children can learn a wider variety of instruments including flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, violin, cello, piano, singing and guitar (NB: guitar can be learnt from Year 3). 

There are currently spaces available to begin this term for the following instruments: Flute, Trumpet, Trombone, 'Cello and Singing. The waiting list is open for all other instruments. Please complete this Google Form for further information and to register your child. For any further queries please contact Mrs Fawbert on cfawbert@sthelenscollege.com. 

Upper School Swimming

As usual, each class in Years 2 to 6 will enjoy an intensive week of swimming lessons this year at Hillingdon Sports and Leisure Complex. Here are the dates for your diary:

w/c Monday 30th September 4C 
w/c Monday 7th October 4T 
w/c Monday 14th October 5R and 5G 
w/c Monday 11th November 3B 
w/c Monday 18th November 3M 
w/c Monday Jan 27th 2C
w/c Monday February 3rd 6H and 6L 
w/c Monday Feb 10th 2S 

Baby Mindfulness Classes

Mrs. McLaughlin's next set of FREE Mother/Baby Mindfulness classes will begin on Wednesday 11th September. These classes are for mothers and babies aged from six weeks until crawling. They run on Wednesday mornings (9 a.m.) at St. Helen's College Upper School and provide a safe space for mums and babies to bond, taking part in breathing, gentle yoga and other mindfulness exercises. There is also the opportunity to meet other local mums and babies and to socialise with them. 

If you have a baby of the right age and are interested in joining these classes, please email Mrs. McLaughlin on pmclaughlin@sthelenscollege.com to reserve your spot. The classes are free of charge and are open to everyone, whether they have a child at St. Helen's College or not, so please do spread the word!

Ducklings, Nursery and Reception Entry - September 2025

If you have a child who will be eligible by age for entry into Ducklings, Nursery or Reception in September 2025, and have not yet registered him/her with St. Helen's College, please do so as soon as possible by completing the online registration form. Our entry processes now take place earlier than in the past; places for next year's Ducklings and Nursery entry points will be allocated during this term. 

Siblings of children currently at the school receive priority when places are allocated, but must be registered now in order to be sure of a place. 

St. Helen's College Open Morning 

Our next 'School At Work' Open Morning for prospective new families is on Wednesday 9th October. If you know of anyone with a child aged three or below who might be interested in visiting the school, please do let them know. They can book their appointments via the school website here. 

Methodist Church Service

St. Helen's College pupils and families are warmly invited to a community service at North Hillingdon Methodist Church on Long Lane on Sunday 8th September at 9.30 a.m. The service will include special prayers for the new academic year ahead and children are invited to bring along school book bags for blessing. 

Chiswick Book Festival 13th - 15th September

The Chiswick Book Festival, which boasts its own Children's Book Festival, is running next weekend, 13th - 15th September. This is a fantastic opportunity for children to join events with a fun and diverse line-up of authors and illustrators. The exciting programme includes Rob Biddulph, Zanib Mian (a favourite visitor at St. Helen's College last year), Ken Wilson-Max and Zoe Antoniades.  Fans of CBeebies Swashbuckle will be thrilled to see Joseph Elliott (Pirate ‘Cook’) with his new younger chapter book about a very exciting grandmother! Mariesa Dulak will be introducing her debut, 'There’s a Tiger on the Train', and fans of graphic novels and comics will love Kev F Sutherland’s workshop. You can book here for all children’s events, which take place in family friendly venues near public transport. 

Mini Me October Half Term Camps 

Mini-Me Camps are running a half term holiday camp at PACCAR Scout Camp from 28th - 31st October. Booking is now available and all friends and family are welcome! Full details, including booking details, are available here. 

Next Week

Monday 9th September - Nursery individual new parent meetings (3.15 p.m. - 5.15 p.m.)
Saturday 14th September - PA Welcome Event in Evans Hall (2 - 4 p.m.)