Parents' Newsletter

World Book Day and International Women’s Day this half term have given staff and students a chance to celebrate literature and women’s achievements, with Year 7 dressing up as their favourite book characters and the whole school wearing purple ribbons to celebrate International Women’s Day.

Lent activities have continued this half term with various fundraising events taking place, reconciliation conducted by our priest and Stations of the Cross. The last week of term will end in our Lenten liturgies.

Year 11, 12 & 13 Drama students have performed their practical exams for GCSE and A Level of which they should be very proud. It is a very busy time for our Year 11 & 13 students preparing for their pending GCSE and A Level examinations, these start just 17 days after the Easter break. To support our students further, we have not only provided after-school interventions and Saturday classes but we also ran a parental workshop to help you support your children at home with revision. There is also a comprehensive programme taking place over Easter for both GCSE and A Level students.

Thank you for continuing to work with us by attending our Parents’ Evenings for Years 8, 9 & 12 this half term, in particular, your support is welcomed in helping our Year 8 students look at their Options choices ready for their Year 9 GCSE courses to start in September.

We finish this term by running a wide range of reward trips as part of our wider mission. Years 7, 8 & 10 to the cinema and Year 9 to bowling. Reward texts continue to be sent home to you at your request, please look out for them, our students love their parents/carers receiving notification of when they are successful in school.

As always, I thank you for your continued support and wish you a happy and Holy Easter.

Adam Hall

HEADTEACHER

Year 9 ‘Called by Name’ Retreat

This half term all Year 9 students went to a nearby external venue to retreat. Stepping back from the normal school day and reflecting on God calling us all by name to follow Him. The retreat was filled with laughter and games and a deep encounter with our Lord through scripture and prayer.

Lenten activities

This Lent students and staff had the opportunity to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation in the Chapel. We are so blessed and thankful for the time Fr Neil, Fr Howard and Fr Martin gave to our school community to be able to find forgiveness through the Lord.

The powerful prayer of the ‘Stations of the Cross’ was entered into by Years 7,8,9, 10 and 12 through the point of view of our Mother Mary. A Year 12 student said ‘It opened my eyes to what Jesus went through and makes me seek to want to be a better Christian’.

Thank you to all the students, parents and staff who donated to the Lenten food and clothes drive. The items of clothing were donated to St Vincent’s charity shop and food and toiletries items were donated to the Hackney Food Bank.

The Year 12 Catholic Leadership team are hosting the raffle this year, winners will be announced on Wednesday!

Holy Week Liturgy

The whole school marked Holy Week with a liturgy to remember the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. The winner of the ‘Stations of the Cross’ poetry competition Michelle (Year 7) read out their beautiful poems followed by the school choir singing ‘Were You There When They Crucified My Lord?’. The liturgy closed with students being invited to venerate the Cross.

Pray

Lord Jesus, we remember your ultimate sacrifice,

Led like a lamb to the slaughter,

clothed in humility and grace,

You willingly offered yourself to death so that we might live forever.

We are truly thankful for the extent of Your love,

stretched out on a cruel wooden cross.

May we truly be able to respond to Your gift in a worthy way this Easter.

Amen

British Science Week is a ten-day celebration of science, technology, engineering and maths. In science, we explored various activities linked with the 2024 theme ‘time’.

The first activity was about plant growth and nutrients, focussed on the factors influencing the time it takes for plants to grow, including the nutrients in the soil. In this activity, students monitored seedlings which grew in different composts. Students also explore the history of the universe.

Students began by creating a timeline of their own life before seeing if they could order certain events in time over 13.8 billion years, back to the beginning of the universe!

Most importantly, students learnt to value how time is linked to everything in their lives and science topics such as evolution, foetus development and seasons.

We also invited Smallpiece Trust, they facilitated workshops where students were encouraged to build the biggest wind turbine from everyday materials, as well as immerse themselves in code-breaking as cyber forensics.

I have been at Cardinal Pole since Year 7 and I couldn’t be happier to be here! From the start, I felt part of a community that lives up to the standards that it sets as a school. One of my favourite parts of my journey was coming back to school after the COVID-19 Lockdown because the school helped us settle back in and I could start my GCSE options.

I have had a lot of help from school in getting ready for my upcoming GCSE exams, from after-school interventions to Saturday study spaces where I can ask for help and study with friends.

I would like to be a pilot in the future and Cardinal Pole has helped me navigate this through careers meetings and preparing me for the next steps in my career.

Throughout the week, students took part in activities which provided them with insights into the diverse range of neurological variations, such as Autism, ADHD, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, and dyslexia. These opportunities empowered neurotypical individuals to embrace and appreciate the unique perspectives and strengths of their neurodivergent peers.

We are committed to fostering an inclusive and accepting environment by avoiding stereotyping and stigmatizing people with neurodivergent conditions. This is why we promote and advocate for accommodations and support systems for neurodivergent individuals to help them fulfil their potential.

We have launched our 'Cardinal Pole Connect' campaign to celebrate and connect with our incredible Alumni.

If you are a former student, please fill in the Google form and be the first to know about our growing alumni community & networking events in 2024.

Looking for something to do this half term?

There are lots of activities in our borough to keep you busy.

Through the Young Hackney Sports Unit, there are football sessions for girls from 5 - 6 pm at Haggerston Astros; there are also multi activities at Eastway Sports Hub in Hackney Wick at 3.30 - 6 pm on Wednesday and much more.

At the Forest Road Youth Club, there are games, multisport and arts and crafts sessions for students between the ages of 13 - 19.

Click the link to view their timetable.

Website: https://www.cardinalpole.co.uk/
Location: 205 Morning Ln, London E9 6LG, UK
Phone: 020 8985 5150