Today, our Y9, Y10, and Y11 pupils embarked on a truly immersive French breakfast experience with Miss. Blanchette and Mr. White and what a fantastic morning it was!

From the moment they arrived, students were transported into a fully French-speaking environment. They confidently ordered drinks and breakfast items entirely in French, practised essential restaurant vocabulary, and even tackled realistic role-play scenarios just like in a GCSE exam.

The highlight? Enjoying a delicious French breakfast! Some adventurous pupils even embraced the French tradition of dunking their croissants and pain au chocolat into steaming bowls of hot chocolate—délicieux!

To celebrate their achievements, every pupil received a certificate, marking their success in expanding their language skills and cultural knowledge. A huge bravo to all who took part—you made us proud!

On Thursday, March 13th, students from St Edmund’s took part in a meaningful environmental initiative, joining a Woodland Trust Project to plant 300 tree saplings at Little Kinvaston School. This project is part of a larger effort to expand native woodlands and create tree-rich habitats that will benefit nature, the climate, and local communities. 

Little Kinvaston School, an independent alternative provision school in South Staffordshire, opened in September 2024. It provides support for young people facing Social, Emotional, and Mental Health challenges or those at risk of permanent exclusion from mainstream education. It is a developing ‘Forest’ School and also houses a number of rescue animals. 

By participating in this project, St Edmund’s students not only contributed to a greener future but also had the opportunity to engage in a hands-on, impactful experience that supports both environmental sustainability and the well-being of their peers.

Wednesday 22nd January 2025

Today we were thrilled to welcome the year 5 class, along with their teacher, Mrs Wilcox, to St Edmund’s chapel to celebrate their own Liturgy of the Word.

Last week Rev had gone to St Teresa’s and spent a lovely morning singing, praying and explaining the liturgy to the year 5 class. They spent a week working hard on their liturgy and today we saw the wonderful fruits of that hard work. Their liturgy was beautifully prayerful, and joyful and provided an opportunity to reflect on the Jubilee Year and what it means to be a “Pilgrim of Hope” in our schools and communities.

Thank you to Mrs Wilcox, the staff and especially year 5 for bringing their gifts and talents to the Lord in and through this liturgy.

As well as all the lovely celebrations of this festive season, let’s not forget the actual reason why we are celebrating Christmas – the birth of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

All churches across the city will be holding special services for Christmas, but, if you are a Catholic, you can attend mass at your parish church. Please follow the link to access the times of Masses on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

God bless you all with peace and joy this Christmas. Rev

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RRwNm_hwymbuch9bCTu3NIpySSNBY1VrtJ9aKYb-gPo/edit?tab=t.0

There’s an old Christmas song that says “it’s the most wonderful time of the year”. In many ways this is true, after all, we are getting to celebrate the most amazing gift humanity has ever been given, Jesus Christ. However, for many in our communities and in our world, Christmas can be a very difficult, challenging and sad time of the year due to the difficult circumstances they find themselves in. To help with this, and to truly live out the mission of our school, this Advent, we at St Edmund’s will be working extra hard to support as many local charities as we can, through a variety of fundraising initiatives. 

Wolves Foundation Shoebox Appeal

The shoebox appeal is run by the Wolves Foundation every December, collecting new essential items and toys to be distributed to families in need. Local organisations they support include; The Good Shepherd, the Women & Families Resource Centre, the Haven, Jericho House and Strengthening Families Hubs.

Fr Hudson’s Caritas – Reverse Advent Calendar

If you’ve not heard of them before, a “reverse” Advent Calendar is the opposite of those filled with treats that we see for sale in the shops. Instead of taking something for yourself out of the calendar, the reverse calendar encourages people to put something in. Fr Hudson’s Caritas, the Social Action branch of the Archdiocese of Birmingham, are asking Catholic school students and their families to donate toiletries, which will be distributed to the homeless, as well as refugees and asylum seekers.

Christmas Hampers

We are very proud of the tradition in our school of reaching out to our most vulnerable families. We have done this at the end of each term for many years now, but since the beginning of the “St Ed’s Larder,” we have been able to extend this support through the year. This year we hope to put together as many Christmas Hampers as we can to support our families, for whom Christmas will be a challenging time.

What Can You Do?

Please be as generous as you can with donations and contributions to our charities. The old saying that “every little bit helps” is absolutely true – it really does! Wishing you all a Happy and Holy Advent.

Rev

On Monday, November 11th, Year 7 students attended a special careers assembly led by Mr Boland. The assembly focused on two significant topics: the importance of Remembrance Day and an introduction to careers in the army.

Mr Boland spoke about why we observe Remembrance Day, honoring the sacrifices of the men and women who served in the armed forces. He highlighted how values such as dedication, courage, and service connect to the many roles within a military career.

Students learned about different career paths in the army, including technical, medical, and leadership roles, gaining insights into the skills and opportunities the armed forces offer. The assembly encouraged students to reflect on the significance of Remembrance Day and consider the unique possibilities of a career in service.

This meaningful event left students with a deeper understanding of both the importance of remembrance and the diverse opportunities within the army.