Dear Parents and Carers,

We have come to the end of a very busy and productive term.  The children now have a well-deserved holiday and we look forward to seeing them back in school on Monday 13^th April.

This week in school

Y4 Passion Play

We are very proud of our Y4 pupils for their wonderful performance of the Passion Play this week.  The Passion Play tells the story of Holy Week and Jesus’ resurrection. The children sang and acted brilliantly, recreating these events with maturity and dignity.  Thank you to Mrs FitzGerald, Mrs King and the staff team and well done too, to Y3 children for their fantastic support in the choir.                     

Lenten Liturgies

As we continue to prepare for Easter we have had a number of liturgies to mark Holy Week.  Our Pupil Chaplains have led Celebrations of the Word on Palm Sunday, the Washing of the Feet and the Last Supper.  They also led a Stations of the Cross liturgy, using drama and music to lead the children in prayer and reflection.

Y5 Stations of the Cross at St Elizabeth’s

On Monday our Y5 children visited St Elizabeth’s Church to pray the Stations of the Cross.  We would like to thank Deacon Quentin for leading this with the children and also for coming into school to hold a whole school Celebration of the Word.

Y4 Visit to the Royal Festival Hall

On Monday Y4 went to the Royal Festival Hall for a musical experience called ‘Orchestra Unwrapped’.  There, they watched the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra perform a number of contemporary and classical pieces.  They were introduced to the instrumental families of the orchestra and took part in a joint song with other schools. 

The children were delighted to see some of the artwork that they had submitted being displayed on the big screens in the Royal Festival Hall.                               

Y3 Visit to Chiltern Open Air Museum

The Y3 visit to Chiltern Open Air Museum was a memorable experience. 

The children experienced what life was like to live in Iron Age and Bronze Age times.  They spent time in an iron-age roundhouse and they learnt how to make a fire using flint, hunt for food, make clay pots and churn butter. 

We would like to thank our parent helpers for going above and beyond on this visit, moving a fallen tree out of the road to allow the coach to pass through! 

Sponsored Walk

The Sponsored Walk was a great success last week!  Thank you to all the parents who walked with us and to the Y2 parents for organising refreshments.  Thank you too, for your sponsorship of the children which has already raised over £2000 for the PTA. There is still time to donate via our Just Giving page at https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/schoolsponsoredwalk2026

Y5 School Journey to Sayers Croft

Y5 had so much fun at Sayers Croft last week.  They spent two nights away from home, and spent their days climbing, swinging from ropes, orienteering, doing a blindfold maze, singing campfire songs and going on a night walk amongst other things.

The children’s curiosity, energy, problem solving skills and enthusiasm were really impressive.  They will have made memories for life and should feel very proud of themselves!

 Y2 Visit to Kew Gardens

The Y2 children had a fantastic day at Kew Gardens this week.

They took part in a workshop on mini-beasts and enjoyed collecting creatures and identifying them.  They also enjoyed finding out about the tropical plants in one of the glasshouses.

Sports Update from Mr Sagar and Mrs Knowles

We have had an exciting end to the Spring Term with hockey, netball, football and basketball action, showing the depth and breadth of sport at St Elizabeth's. The girls football team, who had qualified for the play offs after a successful league campaign, travelled to St Richard Reynolds. In a finely balanced, end-to-end game, both sides played some excellent football with St Richard Reynolds winning narrowly. Well done for a great season, girls!

The netball and hockey clubs hosted friendly games with two Richmond Schools; St Mary's C of E Primary School brought 2 hockey teams and Sheen Mount Primary School bought 2 netball teams. It was very exciting for the Y5 and Y6 children who attend our clubs to have the opportunity to play competitive games against other schools. The matches were enjoyed by children and parents alike and we are grateful to St Mary's and Sheen Mount for visiting us to make this possible.

Finally on Tuesday, a Y5 basketball team took part in the Richmond Borough 3x3 Tournament hosted at Christ's School by Richmond Knights Basketball Club. This is a new exciting, fast-paced version of the traditional game where the ball is never out of play! The children returned to school delighted to have scored a lot of 2 points goals in their 7 exciting games. Well done, team!   

Information for Parents

Lent Charity - Catholic Children’s Society

Thank you for your generous support of our Lent charity.   We have raised an incredible £960 for the Catholic Children’s Society through the collection boxes and the collections after the Passion Play and the orchestra concert. This money goes directly to support families in crisis across London and shows our children how they can help others by putting their faith into action.

School Uniform

When the children return after Easter, children may wear either summer uniform or winter uniform depending on the weather.  Following a request from our school council, we are currently reviewing our summer school uniform and are considering introducing a cotton polo shirt to wear with the grey shorts.  We will send details of this after Easter so you may wish to wait until then before buying summer shirts. The yellow dresses can be either striped or gingham pattern.

Goodbye to Mrs Mottram

We said a fond farewell to Mrs Mottram, our Y5 teacher, today.   Mrs Mottram will be returning to Australia in the near future and she will be spending time with family and taking the opportunity to travel before she leaves.  Mrs Mottram has been a wonderful teacher to many children in school.  We would like to thank her for all her great work at St Elizabeth’s and we wish her all the very best for the future. 

We welcome Mr Askin back to the school as he will be teaching Y5 for the summer term.

Stagecoach at St Elizabeth’s

We are delighted to be partnering with Stagecoach who will be running sessions at St Elizabeth’s on Fridays in the Summer Term.  Please see the attached information for details of how to book.

Upcoming Events

Save the date!   Sunday 17^th May 2026

Join us for one of the most anticipated highlights of the school year - our annual May Fair!

This year's event promises a fantastic day filled with fun, entertainment and something for everyone. We would love for you to be part of it. If you are able to volunteer your time to support the PTA in organising the event, please do get in touch. We are also welcoming support from local businesses - whether through sponsoring a stall, donating a prize, or placing an advertisement in our online brochure.  Please contact us by email if you would like to get involved at: stelizabethsrichmondpta.gmail.com

Awards this week

Half-Term Reading Challenge

Congratulations to Miss Lopez and Y1, who had the most completed challenges and are the winners of the Reading Cup for the last half term. 

Million Word Readers

Congratulations to the following children who have read 1 million words - Gabriel Y3, Oliver Y4, Josie Y4, Simon Y6, Ujaan Y6.

Values Awards this week

Congratulations to the following children who have been noticed living our School Values this week.

Reception – Anastasia and Susu

Y1 – Arthur

Y2 – Victoria

Y3 – Tommy and George                

Y4 – Annabelle

Y5 - Eddie

Y6 – Ola

Wishing you a happy and peaceful Easter and we look forward to seeing the children back in school on Monday 13^th April.

Jane Hines and the staff of St Elizabeth’s