Our Parents meetings will take place on the following days/times for pupils in the Oscar Romero Centre (TORC) and Years 1 through to Year 6:- Key Stage 2 (Years 3, 4, 5, and 6) Tuesday 18th March and/or Thursday 20th March 2025 The Oscar Romero Centre (TORC) Tuesday 18th March and/or Thursday 20th March 2025 (please note entrance to this meeting will be via the ORC entrance) Key Stage 1 (Year 1 and Year 2) Tuesday 25th March and/or Thursday 27th March 2025 We have a system which will allow you to book your appointment for the date and time that is convenient to you which will be sent to the primary contact we have named for your child. Please note meetings will be held face to face in your child's classroom, and you can access the school building via the gates on Netherby Drive. We look forward to meeting with you and discussing your child's progress. Please note this meeting is for parents/carers only, please arrange childcare in advance of your appointment.

Some of our Key Stage 2 children have been selected to take part in the Key Step Gymnastics event at Royal Grammar School on Friday 21st March 2025. The event will allow the children to take part in a carousel of gymnastic activities and also to perform a floor routine appropriate for their level. The winning teams from the different key step groups will go on to represent Newcastle Schools in the 2025 Tyne and Wear Level 3 School Games Final. The pupils will leave school just after lunch and the event will begin at 1:15pm, ending at around 4:30pm. The children will then return to school on the minibus at approximately 4:45pm. Please collect your child from the school office entrance via Beaufront Gardens. Children will come to school in uniform and will get changed before going to the event.  Shorts and T shirt or leotard can be worn Long hair should be tied back All watches/jewelry should be removed prior to the competition Compete either barefoot or in gymnastics slippers   To confirm your child's attendance please email the school office office@emcps.co.uk by no later than Monday 17th March to give permission for your child to attend the event. Please email your child's name and class and note that you give consent for your child to attend this event and please note they must be collected by an appropriate adult at 4.45pm. Mr Thew Class Teacher

ESFA North Regional Finals Dear Parent/Carer, The English Martyrs' U11 football team were successful in the County round of the ESFA Pokemon Primary Schools' Cup.  The North regional Finals will be held as follows: Friday 28th March at Liverpool FC Academy, The Liverpool Way, L33 7ED.   The team will be taken to the academy via the school minibus, and we need to arrive by 11am. The expected meeting time at school will be around 6am, this will however be confirmed nearer to the time.  Parents/Carers are welcome to attend, but all attendees must be registered prior to accessing the facilities. Therefore, we ask for full names of visitors to be provided to laura.moran@emcps.co.uk   no later than 12pm on Monday 10th March. No visitors will be permitted to the site unless their information is received in advance.  We recognise that some players have siblings in school, please contact us ASAP to discuss arrangements if you plan for siblings to attend the tournament.  We plan to stop off at a service station along the way for comfort stops, but as these will be for a limited amount of time, your child will need to bring food and drinks with them (water or juice only). There may be opportunities to purchase some snacks so your child is able to bring NO MORE than £10. The team will need to take responsibility for all their own kit and food/drink. More information regarding this will be given nearer the time.   There are limited changing facilities on the day, therefore the children will be provided with their strips on Thursday 9th March and will be asked to wear these on the day. The children should wear a tracksuit over the top to stay warm.  The children MUST HAVE shinpads, and football boots with moulded studs - no metal studs. Please note that undergarments must be the same colour as the school strip.  While this is an exciting opportunity, the children will be reminded that they are representing English Martyrs' at this event. There will be zero tolerance to poor behaviour both in school, before the event and during the event. School's decision will be final if we feel that a child's behaviour is such that they will not be attending the tournament. We are sure that you will fully support school in acknowledging the importance of the expected behaviour and communicate this message to your children. Visitors and children are reminded that they must accept the decision of the match officials without question. Any concerns regarding behaviour will be reported to the organisers.  Parents/Carers will be emailed with the fixtures and with some more information about the day once they have confirmed their child's attendance and if there are any spectators.  If you have any questions, please contact Miss Moran on 07884 742163, or email laura.moran@emcps.co.uk

Dear Parent/Carer We would like to gather numbers for  our annual Y6 residential visit to Borrowdale, in the Lake District. The dates are 30th June – 2nd July 2025. The trip, as always promises to provide an unforgettable experience for your child, filled with adventure, learning opportunities, and team-building activities. As in previous years, children and staff will stay in the YHA Borrowdale where we have sole use of the accommodation. All meals are provided throughout the trip. The centre is split so that we have a boys and girls side for rooms which allows for privacy and excellent supervision and organisation of pupils. We believe that such experiences play a pivotal role in broadening the horizons of our pupils and fostering their personal growth outside the classroom environment. Children will have the opportunity to engage in a range of outdoor activities and educational workshops, all while being fully supervised by our highly qualified and experienced team of leaders. However, due to factors beyond our control, there has been an increase in the costs associated with the trip. The total cost per student is now £180 (£30 discount for families who receive free school meals). This cost is inclusive of transportation, accommodation, activities, and all meals. We understand the implications this may have and assure you that we have explored all avenues to keep costs at a minimum while maintaining the quality of the experience. School continue to significantly subsidise the costs as much as possible. In order to be able to go ahead with the trip, we do require a minimum of pupils to attend. Please can you indicate if you would like your child to attend the residential visit and acknowledge the associated costs by completing the form. https://forms.office.com/e/uaQcWyBeEX We will hold a detailed information session with parents and pupils once we have an idea of our final numbers and will set up the payment on iPayimpact accounts to manage the costs. Thank you for your continued support

Tempest Photography will be visiting our school on Thursday 20th March 2025. Your child will have their photograph taken individually and with their siblings during the school day. The photographer will also be on site from 8.00am until 8.30am in the main hall should you wish to attend to have a family photo taken with parents and/or any siblings who attend other schools. Please note all children will have their photograph taken, however there is no obligation to purchase a photo.

Click here to register your interest

Dear Parents/Carers As part of the North East Festival of languages, 2025 our Year 4 pupils will be attending a special event at Newcastle Civic Centre on Monday 10th March 2025 . The festival of languages aims to ' Inspire children and young people and empower them to discover a world of language, culture and creativity!' The event year 4 will attend is called 'Welcome to the Arab World' and will involve interactive and fun workshops, including: An Introduction to the Arab World: A fun, interactive session exploring the geography, people, cultures and traditions across the countries of the Arabic World with Jonathan Featherstone, Honorary Fellow, Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Edinburgh and Arabic Teacher at University of Cambridge An inspiring Arabic Language and culture taster session with Saleh Patel, an outstanding Arabic teacher from Horton Park Academy in Bradford, where children will learn some Arabic greetings and phrases and build their confidence to speak An engaging Arabic calligraphy session with Abu Yahya, an outstanding calligraphy artist who has featured on the BBC and has residencies teaching calligraphy, has delivered multiple exhibitions Pupils from 4D will attend the event in the morning and pupils from 4T will attend the event in the afternoon. We will travel to and from the event by private coach. It is important that pupils in 4D arrive in school on time as the coach will leave prompt at 9.05am. Pupils in 4T will return to school for the end of the school day. As the event will require pupils in both classes travelling over lunchtime. All pupils will need a packed lunch on this day. Pupils in receipt of free school meals will automatically receive a packed lunch from the school kitchen. If you have any further questions, please contact the school office and ask to speak to Mr Kennedy. Many Thanks

World Book Day 2025 will take place on Thursday 6 March 2025 . This annual celebration of authors, illustrators, books and the joy of reading is always a fantastic day in school. Pupils will enjoy a range of fun activities throughout the day. We will also explore the book 'I Want a Dog' by Jon Agee as a whole school and create some lovely work based on the text. This year's World Book Day theme is to Read Your Way . Research shows that children feel reading is something they have to do, rather than something they choose to do. Read Your Way encourages everyone to let go of reading pressures and expectations, and empowers children and young people to have fun discovering reading on their own terms. As part of our World Book Day Celebrations on Thursday 6th March , pupils are encouraged to come to school dressed in clothes or costumes inspired by their favourite story book, character or author. We would also like to host a book swap, with pupils swapping a book with another pupil during the day. All we need the children to do is bring a book they are happy to give up. Please make sure your child fully understands the book they being to school will not be coming home as they will be choosing a new book to bring home and enjoy together. Please make sure all books are in good condition with no pages missing.

We are very excited to share that The Oscar Romero Centre will be visiting The Alan Shearer Activity Centre once a week starting after February half term. Pupils will be attending the centre every Monday morning next half term from 9.30am to 10.30am (beginning on 3rd March 2025 and will run up until and including 7th April 2025). They will travel via our school minibus with the staff from The Oscar Romero Centre. We are sure that the pupils in The Oscar Romero Centre will have so much fun, and we are looking forward to enjoying this experience with them. If you have any questions about this, please do not hesitate to contact Mrs Allen or Mr Young.

Year 6 SATs Parent/Carers Meeting - Tuesday 4th March Year 6 Booster to start - Thursday 6th March     SATs Meeting   As you are aware your child will be sitting their SATs the week beginning 12th May 2025. We would like to invite you into school for a SATs Parents meeting on Tuesday 4th March starting at 3.30pm. The aim of the meeting is to provide you with some information about the tests and how you may like to support your child at home. This meeting will give you the opportunity to understand what the tests will entail, to have the opportunity to look at some past papers and ask any questions which you may have. The meeting should last no longer than 20 minutes. A power point will be available if you are unable to attend the meeting .    Booster   Year 6 will be running further study (booster) sessions after February half term. This will help prepare the children for their SATs exams. The sessions will run after school on a Tuesday and Thursday evening from 3:30pm to 4:15pm from Thursday 6th March. Children will need to be collected from the Netherby Drive exit at the end of the session at 4.15pm. If your child normally walks home on their own but you would like to collect them after the sessions please inform the school office. Children without usual permission to walk home must be collected.    Thank you,    Year 6 team

English Martyrs’ are today joining thousands of schools across the UK on Friday 7 February 2025 in a Times Tables Rockstars (TTRS) event, for the 25th anniversary of NSPCC Number Day.    Some pupils will have been able to log on to their TTR account in school today, to take part in the challenges. However, the competition is open until 7.30pm tonight for all pupils with a TTRS account.   Pupils will earn points for the school but also for their own class.   HOW IT WORKS Learners will try to answer as many multiplication and division questions correctly as they can. The winning school and class will be based on the highest average number of correct answers per pupil.   Rules:   1.   Every correct answer that a student gives, in any game type, between the hours of 7:30am GMT to 7:30pm GMT each day will contribute to their class and school score. 2.   There is a 60-minute limit playtime per player, per day. 3.   Each class has a minimum player count of 10. If fewer than 10 in the class play in the competition, their total will be divided by 10 regardless.   Pupils simply need to log on and engage with any of the games or activities.

Dear Parents/Carers, We are thrilled to invite your child to a KS1 Movie Night  – a fantastic opportunity for them to unwind and enjoy a fun, family-friendly film with their friends! Here’s what you need to know: Date and Time:  Monday 17th February Movie Details:  The movie will be ‘IF’  Click here  to watch the trailer. The movie is a Certificate U, making it perfect for all KS1 children. Ticket Price:  £3.00 This also includes a drink and a snack for your child to enjoy during the screening. Payment: Online payments only, using your iPayimpact account. Tickets sales will 'go live' on Monday and the office will send a reminder text to inform you of this. Pupils may bring a small blanket or pillow to help them get comfy for the screening. Please ensure any items are brought to in a suitable bag. The film will start promptly after school and pupils will be be taken straight to the hall to watch the movie. We expect the movie to finish at approximately 5pm. Parents should collect children from the KS2 Yard, outside of the school hall at 5pm. All proceeds from the evening will go directly towards supporting the development of our school grounds and equipment, helping to provide an even better environment for your child’s education and play. We look forward to seeing lots of excited faces at the movie night! We will also be hosting additional movie nights, after half term for our KS2 pupils.