Dear Parents,

 

I can't believe we have reached the end of another week; suddenly Christmas feels very close.

Last weekend we were able to celebrate the wonderful success of the Christmas Fair.  Fofsa worked so hard to create such a fun, engaging and organised virtual event and thanks to everyone, we made an amazing £1368.50 on the virtual fair and a £1303.50 on the online auction.  This is a fantastic achievement and we still have matched funding to add.  Thank you all so much.  I hope FOFSA feel very proud.

 

There has been a Christmasy feel to school this week with our Angel mail prayer box, Christmas card collections, the recording of our Carol service and then the exciting visit from Father Christmas today.  Rosefinch could barely contain themselves and kept spotting him all morning before he visited us at 2.30pm!  Again an enormous thank you to FOFSA for arranging his visit, very special memories made.

 

I would also like to thank you for supporting the First Days charity.  This charity was chosen by School Council. The charity support babies and children who are in need, it was lovely to provide items for their stockings.  Thank you Mrs Dodds for supporting this and making the arrangements.  The compassion our children show is admirable.

 

I now must share the sad news that Mrs Williams will be leaving us at the end of term.  We are in the process of recruiting and I will keep you informed of any developments but in the meantime I cannot thank Mrs Williams enough for her hard work, commitment, generosity and incredible organisational skills. Mrs Williams provides wonderful support to the Goldfinch team and the children everyday. She has been at the school for roughly 16 years and whilst she will be terribly missed, we wish her every happiness for the future.  Thank you Mrs Williams for all you do.

 

Next week will be equally busy I am sure.  We begin the week with a Santa Dash competition and end it with a Christmas treat on the Friday in each class.  It will be the day of Christmas lunch.  All children, whether school lunch or packed, will be given a cracker and then teachers will be organising a fun afternoon.

 

As we approach the last two weeks of this term, I must reiterate the same message regarding Covid.  If you or a member of your household needs a test, is awaiting test results or has a positive test result, please inform me as soon as possible.  This communication will need to continue over the Christmas holiday as positive cases could impact others within our school.  head@finchampstead.wokingham.sch.uk.   The number of Wokingham school cases still seems to be growing and this includes nurseries, primary schools and secondary schools. I thank you all again for your caution and consideration during this time and I am hoping we can continue to remain well.

 

I wish you a safe and happy weekend

 

Jacquie Vanstone