Dear parents and carers,
British Values Day
This week we have celebrated British Values Day. This is one of our four themed days a year (others being School Vision Day - September; Spirituality Day - November; School Values Day - April) and is a chance, where we suspend the normal timetable, to celebrate the values that are celebrated across the country. Whether you are born here or not; whether you consider yourself British or not, the United Kingdom is where we all currently find ourselves and where our daily interactions take place.
Whilst through the media we often hear quite negative things about the UK - be it climate, weather or government there are many great things too and that is what the pupils have been focussing on, as you will see below, as each year group has different values assigned to them:
Year Three - The rule of law. We live in a country where we are governed by rules and laws to guide how we live - in the same way the Bible guides Christians. As we have seen this week, nobody is above the law!
Year Four - Mutual respect and tolerance. It does not matter who you are or where you come from or what you may believe, you have the right to be respected. We may not always agree, but there should be tolerance for the views and beliefs of others.
Year Five - Individual liberty. We have the freedom to choose our own careers, where we live, what religion we are, who to marry (or to stay single). These rights do not exist in every country.
Year Six - Democracy. The right to have a say in who governs us and to vote in fair elections.
The pupils have been producing fantastic work in each of these areas along with undertaking The Big Legal Lesson which is a national campaign to teach young people about the law. We joined a network of thousands of teachers and legal professionals across England and Wales who are committed to developing young people’s knowledge of the rule of law and their legal rights. This ensured that our pupils have a basic understanding of what the law is and how much it affects our lives. A big thank you to Mr. Wakeford for arranging this important day.
Community month
Our community month of June continues this week with more classes visiting the local care home. Next week we also have classes serving at Dagenham Parish Church. Well done to all the pupils for supporting their local community in this way. Having taken our Star of the Week collective worship today, it was interesting to hear how many of the stars were awarded for children supporting their own school community this week - their community spirit is being brought back into school which is wonderful to see.
NEU strike days
I am aware that some parents have contacted the office to ask for the school's plan for 5th and 7th July. Rest assured I am working on this and will endeavour to keep the school open for as many pupils as possible. However, some level of disruption is inevitable. I will aim to have a letter for all parents by the middle of next week, but also, please be aware, as in previous strike days, arrangements can change rather last minute, especially as the covering of sudden staff sickness is even more challenging on such days. I thank you for your patience.
I pray you all have a wonderful weekend,
Mr. David Huntingford
Headteacher