St Mary's Newsletter

“Love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12)

Dear Parents and Carers,

As we reach the final day of the half term, it’s wonderful to look back on what has been a fantastic start to the year here at St Mary’s and look forward to lots of exciting things.

Bonfire Night – Next Week!
Our Bonfire Night celebration is almost here! Join us on Friday 31st October from 7.30pm to 9.30pm at Rectory Gardens for an evening of fun. Tickets are selling fast, so make sure to get yours now—you won’t want to miss out! It’s great value for a wonderful evening out, and every penny raised goes straight back to supporting the children in our school through the fantastic work of the PSA. Scan the QR code to purchase your tickets or use this link Bonfire Night Tickets, and we’ll see you there for a fantastic night of community fun!

Important – Revised Term Dates and INSET Days
You will have already received details of this by email, but please note that we have made some adjustments to the term dates and INSET days at the end of term. This will allow staff time to pack up the Church Lane site as we prepare for the exciting move to the Rectory Gardens site in September. Thank you for your understanding and support as we make these important preparations for the next chapter in St Mary’s journey. You can access the web page from the For Your Informatino section below.

Parent Governor Vacancy
Please look out for information coming soon about the election for a new Parent Governor (or Associate Governor) position. We are particularly keen to hear from parents who have experience or understanding of construction and project management, as we have an important year ahead with our site development. Your skills and insight could be invaluable in helping the Full Governing Body lead the school through this exciting period of change.

Farewell to Ilham Ali
We were delighted to welcome Ilham Ali to St Mary’s earlier this half term as our new School-Home Support worker. Sadly, due to unforeseen family circumstances, Ilham will not be returning to her role. This has been a very difficult decision for her, as she had made such a positive start and was already beginning to get to know many of our parents and families. We are very sorry to see her go and wish her and her family all the very best for the future.

Black History Month
As Black History Month comes to a close, we have been marking this year’s theme, “Standing Firm in Power and Pride”, reflecting on the importance of recognising and celebrating Black History. In assembly, children learned about Walter Tull, an inspiring role model who showed great courage and determination both on the football field and in the army. At St Mary’s, we continue to prioritise role models that reflect our diverse community in our daily teaching and opportunities, including upcoming African drumming and steel pan workshops, and our annual International Evening (date to be confirmed).

Year 3 Transition Update
This half term, Year 3 children have been entering and leaving Rectory Gardens via the front entrance to help them settle as the youngest in the building. From after half term, they will use the main gate with all the other children. Parents are welcome to walk their children to class or into the playground. Well done to Year 3 for settling in so quickly!

Year 6 Residential to Pendarren

We are very excited for our Year 6 children, who will be heading off to Pendarren in Wales for a five day residential trip during the first week back after half term. This is a wonderful opportunity for them to build independence, teamwork, and confidence while taking part in outdoor adventures such as climbing, canoeing, and exploring the beautiful Welsh countryside. We can’t wait to hear all about their experiences and the memories they’ll make together!

We hope the term continues to be full of learning and community spirit.

Thank you for your support, and we look forward to the weeks ahead.

See you back in school on Monday 3rd November.

Jane O’Brien

Headteacher

Important Dates – please make a note

Saturday 31st October – Bonfire Night at Rectory Gardens 7.30pm to 9.30pm Bonfire Night 31 10 25
Monday 3rd November to 7th November – Year 6 to Pendarren
Tuesday 11th November – Flu Immunisations for Reception to Year 6 Click here to consent/deny for flu immunisations
Tuesday 11th November – Parent Consultations – all classes apart from Y6 Indigo (more details to follow)
Wednesday 12th November – Parent Consultations – all classes apart from Y6 Indigo (more details to follow)
Wednesday 12th November – Y3 Thames Mudlarking Trip
Monday 17th November – EYFS (Nursery & Reception) to Holy Innocents for Christingle making
Tuesday 18th November – Individual and sibling photos – more details to follow
Tuesday 18th November – Y6 Indigo Parent Consultations
Wednesday 19th November – Y6 Indigo Parent Consultations
Thursday 20th November – Y6 Pendarren Assembly (2.30pm)
Friday 5th December – Christmas Fair @ RG 5.30-7.30pm
Monday 8th December – EYFS (Nursery & Reception) and KS1 (Y1 & Y2) to Holy Innocents for Nativity puppet show

For Your Information

Bonfire Night: Last 30 tickets for bonfire night (online only). Bring along proof of ticket on email/phone on the night! Doors open 7:30pm, last entrance 8:30pm –Bonfire Night Tickets
Looking for activities for the children over the half term? Have a look at the Haringey Half Term Fun booklet Haringey Holiday Fun October 2025
Please take a look at our amended term dates AMENDED TERM DATES
Are you the parent/carer of an SEND child? If so, please click here to read the Haringey SEND Team October newsletter Haringey SEND Newsletter – October 2025
Flu immunisations are coming up this term – please use this link to confirm your child’s place (or reject) and use postcode N8 7BU in location Flu Immunisations
Reminder: Rectory Gardens is a School Street. This means no driving on the road between 8am–9am and 2.45–3.30pm. Let’s keep our children safe, the air clean and prevent you from getting a penalty notice!
Our Toddler & Parent Group on Monday mornings is becoming very popular – if you’d like your under 3 to attend (or know of someone) email lchristou@stmarysn8.co.uk to book a place

Reminders

Please remember to call or email if your child is going to be off school – don’t wait for us to call you!
We are on Instagram – follow us to see our wonderful school @stmarysschooln8 and tell your family to follow us too!
Reminder about unauthorised absences and holidays during term time As you will know from previous correspondence, St Mary’s will be following the Government guidance with regards to fining families when a child has missed 10 or more sessions (5 days) for unauthorised reasons. Children should only be out of school for reasons that have been authorised.
We are strictly a nut-free school – please remember this for packed lunches and party treats
We are a latex-free school – this includes balloons, latex gloves, rubber bands etc

Contact Details

Are your contact details up-to-date?

If you have changed your address, telephone or email address please let us know as soon as possible. Have your personal circumstances changed? Again, please let us know. If you don’t get emails or texts from us then we may need to update your details.

Class News

Nursery	In nursery we are really noticing the changes of the season, talking about the weather and how we now need our coats on. We are encouraging the children to put on their own coats – so please help them practice over the holiday! We have introduced ‘Helicopter Stories’ where a child tells a story, using our story friends, which the teacher annotates. They illustrate the story before we tell the story to the whole class, and different children act out the different roles. The children who have written their story have done a fantastic job. Nursery has had a lot of messy play, helping children develop their fine motor skills. We have had cornflour play, mud kitchen, bubbles and shaving foam. The children have loved playing with the different textures. Please look out for our letter about a local walk on Tuesday 11th November.
Reception	Reception have had a wonderful fortnight. We had our first Forest School session, where we made bridges, used charcoal for drawing and played in a mud kitchen. We learned more about the creatures who live in Ally Pally and enjoyed having a picnic up there too. The children did so well walking there and back and really enjoyed being outside all day. In English we have now finished our first Ready Steady Write unit on The Something. The children can retell the story of Dan and his ball brilliantly and they have been exploring writing sentences in their books. In maths, we are now learning number and we are confident with representing 1, 2 and 3 in different ways, adding 1 more and finding 1 more. As part of our Understanding the World unit we have been learning about forces and floating and sinking. The children really enjoyed experimenting and discovering which objects would float and which would sink. We have now finished our RE unit on Creation and we can confidently talk about the Creation Story and what is special to us. We would like to say a big well done to all the children for settling in so well to Reception in their first half term. A gentle reminder that PE is on Thursday, so children need to wear PE kits. If you are unsure of which colour t-shirt your child should wear, please do speak to the class teacher. We hope you have a restful half term, enjoy the fireworks and we look forward to seeing you all ready for next term.
Year 1	The children have made a great start to Year 1 this first half term! In English, the children finished writing imaginative letters from the perspective of a mouse trapped in an attic, asking toys for help. They then wrote this up in their neatest handwriting for their writing portfolios. In maths, the children began learning the number bonds to 10 and practiced using the addition symbol. They also learnt how to use systematic number bonds to 10. For RE this week, we visited Holy Innocents Church and learnt more about the creation story. The children also recapped their understanding of the Creation story and the responsibilities we have to look after the world. In science, we took a seasonal walk to Priory Park, noting the weather and what the leaves looked like. We also continue to practice reading, phonics and high frequency words in groups and as a class, which the children are making great progress with.
Year 2	In English, we’ve been continuing to take inspiration from the beautifully illustrated story A River. The children are now ready to write a warning letter filled with practical advice for the main character, as he journeys through imaginative landscapes of their own creation. In maths, we’ve been focussing on addition and subtraction, developing our skills through a range of engaging activities and problem-solving tasks. In science, we’ve been investigating why hygiene is important and learning all about germs — what they are, how they spread, and how we can protect ourselves. As part of our topic work, we have now finished exploring The Great Fire of London. We also had a wonderful time visiting the Tower of London, where we learned even more about London’s fascinating history. In RE, we’ve been learning about why and how people keep their promises to God, exploring the many different ways people show their devotion in a variety of faiths.
Year 3	In our addition and subtraction unit in maths, we have been using the column method to add and subtract 2-digit numbers to and from 3-digit numbers. We’ve been doing this with exchanging and regrouping and applying this to real-life scenarios. In English we have been using our plans to produce information leaflets about rivers, learning how to use the correct structure and technical language. We are super proud of our work and looking forward to seeing them on display very, very soon! In preparation for our upcoming trip to the River Thames to explore the shore, we completed a quiz about everything we have learnt about through our river topic, including; the river’s course, issues the Thames faces, the Thames now and then, and lots, lots more!
Year 4	Year 4 have been busy in D&T, looking at biscuit products and designs and adapting recipes. We had so much fun baking our adapted recipes and then, of course, taste-testing them after. Scarlet Class have rated them ‘heavenly’ and 10/10. We have also just finished our first class novel, Llama Out Loud and we absolutely loved it. In maths, we have been focussing on multiplication and have been working hard on learning our x3 x6 and x9 tables to help with our class work.
Year 5	We have now completed our reports about our journeys into space in English and the children have really impressed us with how much they have learned about this formal style of writing. They have absorbed lots of interesting new vocabulary and are learning how to add additional information using brackets or commas. In maths, we have nearly finished our unit on addition and subtraction. We learned to solve problems of several stages, used mental methods for comparing numbers and explored strategies for solving missing number questions. We completed our work on the Solar System in our science topic and have really enjoyed learning about the key features of different planets. Also, we learned about the different phases of the Moon and how night and day and the seasons are created.
Year 6