FAMILY MATTERS

Holy Family Catholic School

A Catholic Secondary School

www.holyfamily.waltham.sch.uk
th

Friday 13 December 2013

Quotation of the week

In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity Albert Einstein
Dear Parents/Carers,
Generosity
I received a lovely message from Cafod thanking us for the donation we made in response to the
typhoon in the Philippines.
Dear Dr Stone,
Thank you for the fantastic and generous donation of 2,216 for the CAFOD Philippines appeal
forwarded to our Head Office they will be sending you an official receipt.

CAFOD would like to thank all the children, parents and staff of Holy Family Catholic
School for their generosity to the CAFOD Philippines appeal. We are working through
partners, The Catholic Relief Service and Caritas Philippines, who are delivering aid to
thousands of survivors through local parishes we have, so far, reached 361,790 people in
13 regions, including delivering shelter kits and food. In the longer term, we will help
people to rebuild their lives. Thank you for supporting CAFOD. You can find out more of
our work - go to: www.cafod.org.uk
Behaviour at the bus-stop and on public transport
Regrettably we are still having problems with the behaviour of some students waiting for
buses after school. Much of this is due to the sheer volume of students seeking to take a
bus journey, but some is due to the poor behavior of some individuals pushing and shoving.
We supervise the bus stop on Forest Rd each afternoon but there are hundreds of students
to manage and the pavement is very narrow. We have received a number of complaints
from members of the public about students pushing and shoving and blocking pathways.
As a result we are making a number of changes which will be communicated to students on
Friday this week and will apply from next week. These are for the benefit of everyone and I
ask for your support as parents/carers with this.
From Monday 16th December the only students permitted to wait at the bus-stop in front of
Thorpe Coombe hospital on Forest Rd will be students in Yr 7 and 8.
Students in Yrs 9, 10 and 11 based on the Wiseman site, who wish to travel towards
Walthamstow Central, must take a bus from the bus stops nearer to the Wiseman site on
Shernhall St, or Prospect Hill. There is no need to walk down to Forest Rd as this is walking
further away from Central. In fact, it is usually quicker to walk to Central (and healthier!)
rather than take a bus.
Students who wish to take the 123 bus towards Tottenham Hale must take the bus from the
bus stop near the YMCA building on Forest Rd and not from the bus stop near Thorpe
Coombe.

In addition, no student in Yr 7/8 is permitted to buy food from the chicken shop on Forest
Rd. Not only is this bad for their health, but students are throwing litter away on the
pavement and crossing the road without taking proper care. It is an accident waiting to
happen. All of this creates a terrible impression of our school. The behaviour of our
students after school is not simply the responsibility of Holy Family and I ask that you speak
to your son/daughter about these matters and support us in our efforts to improve things.
Advent Carol Service
Please come and support our annual Carol Service which takes place on Tuesday 17th
December at 7.00pm in St George's church. Earlier this week I was fortunate to be present
at the Borough Civic Carol Service where our wonderful choir sang in the Bleak Midwinter
beautifully. Thanks to all involved in the choir and to the music staff Ms Millen and Mrs
Corlett.
Non-uniform day Monday 16th December
Please note that we have a non-uniform day on Monday in aid of the PTA raffle. Please
support this and buy as many tickets as possible there are some fantastic prizes to be
won.
Christmas lunch
We will be serving a traditional Christmas lunch on both sites on Wednesday 18 th
December
End of Term
The end of term is Friday 20th December. Students will have a half-day and will be
dismissed at 12 noon from each site.
Parents Surgery
Parents surgery is operating as usual from 4pm to 5pm on Tuesday 17 th December.
Thank you.
Please continue to remember us in your prayers.
Dr Andy Stone
Headteacher

Advent at Holy Family School

Christmas Hampers
Dear Parents and Carers,
As part of our Advent preparations at The Holy Family Catholic School every class group is
asked to make and fill a Christmas Hamper! The hampers will be offered at our
Christmas Carol service
(Tuesday 17th December, 7pm at the Parish Church of Our Lady and St George)
and then will be given to the Christian Kitchen as a Christmas present from the school. The
Christian Kitchen will make sure local people in need benefit from our gift.
Preparing the Hampers is a simple way of helping those in need this Christmas. The people
getting these gifts benefit from spending a little less money this time of year, and they know
someone is thinking of them and praying for them this Christmas.
Hampers need to be completed by Monday 16th December.
Any extra food or donations will be given to the Redbridge Night Shelter, a charity the school
has supported for many years. These homeless people would also benefit from toiletries, hats,
gloves and non-perishable goods.
Your child will be asked to make a contribution over the next few weeks, please support
them in doing this.
Some suggestions for your shopping list:

Mince pies, a bottle of Juice, a Christmas pudding, a packet of pasta or

spaghetti, pasta sauce, various tins of food like; baked beans, soups, fruit,
custard, tinned vegetables, packets of biscuits, packets of jelly, dried
noodles, drinking chocolate, tea and coffee, tin of salmon or corned beef ,
the list is endless! (Please make sure all food is well within its use by date.)

Thank you very much for your support.

You are invited

Christmas Carol Service
Tuesday 17th December, 7pm at the Parish Church of Our
Lady and St George
A great way to start your Christmas

Anyone in Year 10 or above interested in being confirmed at St Patricks Church needs to

get a form from St Patricks Church and return it as soon as possible.
There is also a meeting for Parents and Candidates on Monday 16th December at 6pm in
St Patricks Church (previously was arranged to be in parish hall). Application forms will be
available.
Thank You

The Media Production Team have been hard at work the past few weeks filming school
events including STEM clubs exhibition. Joel Thevarajah (9.4), Libby Delbourgo (9.5),
Sonny Kelly-Green (9.6), Gerda Gustainyte (9.6) have become keen filmmakers and
editors! Let them know of any events or short films you would like them to make or give
assistance with.