School of Sanctuary
Refugee Week
We were really lucky to have some visitors in school yesterday to help us celebrate Refugee Week.
Mika, Emeka and Tesfay are asylum seekers who came into school to share their story with our children. It was an emotive and reflective day for everyone and we would like to say a big thank you to them for taking the time to come and speak to us. This day was organised through a charity called Stories of Hope and Home. We raised money for them during our Lenten appeals, so we were also able to present them with that yesterday as well. Stephanie (who runs the charity) wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone at St Paul's and explained to us what a difference the money will make.
During the week every child in school will be thinking about their 'One Simple Act'. This is the theme of this years Refugee Week and helps us to think about the small things we can do for others to make them smile. Once the children have decided on their simple acts we will be attaching them all the to front fence of school to be shared with everyone who walks past school. We are hoping our simple acts can put a smile of the faces of all our parents and families, as well as people in the wider community.
WE DID IT! We are officially a School of Sanctuary!
On Wednesday we had a very special assembly where we were presented with the award. We would like to say a huge thank to all our children and families who have supported us on this journey. This award shows that St Paul's is a caring, inclusive and welcoming school - it is a fantastic achievement.
Next week is Refugee week in school and we are looking forward to welcoming Stephanie and her friends from Stories of Hope and Home who will be running workshops with each class. If you would like any more information about this charity please use the link below.
https://storiesofhopeandhome.blogspot.com/
What a fantastic 'Amazing Africa Day' we have had today!
We would like to thank all of the parents that have helped make today so successful. We had an amazing 11 parents come in and talk to the children about their home country. We have had parents from Eritrea, Ethiopia, The Congo, Sudan, Ghana and Zimbabwe come in and share clothing, ceramics, pieces of hand craft and even some food!
The children have had an amazing day celebrating Africa, every class has had an African drumming lesson from Omar and all the classes have learnt about their chosen country, made some traditional crafts and listened to African music.
It has been a fantastic celebration and so lovely to see our children of African heritage wearing their traditional clothes.
Amazing Africa Day - 1st April 2022
Amazing Africa Day!
On Friday 1st April we will be having an Amazing Africa Day in school. Each class has chosen a different African Country to focus on and the day will be full of music, crafts and fun!
We are looking for parent volunteers to come into school and be part of our special day. We are looking for people who could;
- Talk to a small group of children about their home country
- Share traditional clothing or items
- Tell a traditional story
- Cook some traditional African food.
- Just come and be part of our celebration!
If you are interested in helping please let the office know. We will be having a short meeting after school on Wednesday 23rd March. We really hope you can make it.
Mrs Caffrey
Welcome to St Paul's Catholic Primary School
We have been working hard to try and make St Paul's a welcoming environment to everyone. Our new posters in the foyer area say welcome in lots of different languages!
Together for Refugees - The Orange Heart Campaign
To show that here at St Paul’s we support Refugees every child in school decorated an orange heart, which was then displayed on the library windows for everyone to see.
The orange heart is a symbol of the Together with Refugees campaign and represents compassion for people fleeing war and persecution. Inspired by the refugee nation flag, and the colours of a lifebelt, the heart symbolises hope and kindness.
Refugee Week 2021
Throughout Refugee week we have shared assemblies where we looked at what it is to be a refugee and what challenges refugees face at every step of their journey.
We shared the story of Ruth. Ruth is a 13 year old girl from Eritrea who had to leave her home as she was being forced into marriage. In our class groups we discussed Ruth’s journey and how she felt at each part of it. We were surprised at what Ruth had to go through to get to England, and how much she had to sacrifice.
We then had to imagine that we were refugees and had to leave our homes very quickly. We had to pick 6 items to carry in a bag on our back from our home. We had lots of discussion around what we would take and why. It’s interesting to find out what items people would take in an emergency.
We also talked about what we can do as a school for any children that might join us who are refugees. The children showed deep compassion and empathy during these discussions. It was decided that being kind, showing them what to do and helping them learn some English would be the important things that would make someone feel welcome if they were new to our school.
