You may have spotted some new signs in Romborough Way to encourage parents to park elsewhere, to make the road safer for children crossing and waiting outside school. Only 4 people out of 12 on the school council currently walk to school. 9 said they could walk to school if they left a little earlier. Imagine if that was replicated on a whole school scale where three quarters of us walked to school! The School Council have decided that they will be starting a new campaign called Walk to School to encourage everyone to walk, scoot or cycle to school. This not only helps improve safety and pollution but also makes us all fitter and healthier which can only be a good thing. Now that the weather is getting brighter and warmer why don't you try walking to school?

We have donated several computers to our link school in Ghana and we received this lovely message from one of the students:
“I feel so humble to write to you, expressing my firm gratitude for the amazing gift I received, it's quite overwhelming to feel loved. I write to appreciate you for the gift of a Computer. I am in my second year of senior high school, and at first, it was very difficult as a student to study only theory aspect of I.C.T. without practicals, and also not able to explore in different fields of study through online platforms. I assure you that providing me with this opportunity will not be wasted. I cannot thank you enough for giving me a leg up in starting this new phase of my life, thank you for supporting me in this regard. I am truly aware that your reward is great in heaven. Love, Atoore Pascal.”

Our Year 5 & 6 children have been doing some real courageous advocacy! After hearing that some people without settled status are getting charged for routine operations at hospitals including Lewisham, they decided to create some Christmas cards to the CEO Mr Travis with a strong message. The cards were then delivered by some of the children to the hospital with a naughty or nice bag. It is amazing to see our children campaigning for a more just and fair system for all.

Many families at St Mary's will have received a food bag over the past few months and more recently some families have received food vouchers to help with shopping costs. This has all been thanks to Reverend Charles - a long time supporter of St Mary's school and his new charity called Projectfivek, which aims to feed those families who might otherwise struggle to make ends meet. We are so grateful to Charles and his wife for their hard work and support of the families in our school this year. They really have made a difference!

"The vouchers have been very useful, they have helped to put food on many families’ tables. The food makes a real difference to families’ lives. We would like to thank Reverend Charles."
Parent of a child in Year 6

We are very proud of our children, parents and staff who continue to campaign and fight for equality and equal opportunity for all. St Mary’s continue to work closely with Citizens UK to ensure that our voice is heard and that we achieve real change. We have joined a new campaign, building on our previous success in enabling thousands of NRPF families to access Free School Meals:

Nobody should be left behind – not now, not ever! Time to end NRPF for good!

Covid-19 has shone a brighter light on the injustices that many migrants face. Many of our neighbours are unable to access government help because of where they were born, and the immigration papers they have. This is because of a government policy called No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) that denies people living and working in the UK crucial forms of support from the government. Without assistance like Universal Credit and housing benefit, many people – including 100,000 children – are feeling stranded and left without a safety net.

​Thanks to the generosity of St. Mary's parish, Citizens UK are continuing to work at St. Mary's with both pupils and parents. Hannah from Lewisham Citizens came in to visit Years 5 and 6 to talk about what community campaigning is. To illustrate this she asked Mrs Tildesley to sit on a table. Then Hannah asked what the pupils felt strongly about and asked them to try and lift the table single-handedly as a symbol of trying to make a change. Of course no-one could lift Mrs Tildesley and the table single-handedly, but working together the pupils did achieve their task. Working together we can make a change!

​The children who have been attending St Mary’s School decided to design and create a huge thank you to all of the NHS staff that are working so hard to save lives during the Coronavirus outbreak.

Members of the School Council and some additional children from Year 5 were invited by Lewisham Homes to the site of the old Ladywell Leisure Centre to discuss what type of accommodation they might like to be built there. They learnt about the role of architects in these situations and using drawings, words and lego began creating their own visions of what the homes should look like.
The children came up with great ideas and creations including lots of outdoor spaces, dance areas and cafes. The children’s models will be part of the consultation programme currently taking place. It will be exciting to see what building is eventually created!

Congratulations to the Immigration Action Group!
St. Mary’s Immigration Action Group was recently given an award from South London Citizens for best local win of the year. This relates to the work which the parents have done to make Lewisham a more welcoming borough for migrants and newcomers.
After meeting with Councillor Kevin Bonavia the parents are now preparing some training for Lewisham staff who work in the No Recourse to Public Funds Team. Well done to all the parents for their work so far and all parents are welcome to join us at our next meeting as we need more help!