Advent Reflection Autumn 2 2025

Over the past three weeks, our Liturgy Team has come together to focus on the true meaning of Christmas. This special time has been filled with reflection, scripture, and prayer, inspiring all our pupils to create beautiful and heartfelt responses.

We focused on the candles of the Advent wreath:

Week 1 - Hope

Week 2 - Love

Week 3 - Joy

Week 4 - Peace

Taking time out from our busy week to gather and reflect has been a meaningful experience for us all, deepening our understanding of the significance of this wonderful time of year.

 “The Advent reflection has been a nice, calm time when you have prayers and also writing/drawing about what we have been learning. We read the Gospel, which reminds us about God and how it’s nearly Jesus’ birthday.”

Bianka (Year 6)

“It has enabled us to get closer to God and reflect on things we have done in the past.”

Nuala (Year 6)

Nativity and Carol Concert w/b 8/12/25

It has been a wonderful week of acting, reading, and singing at St. Catherine’s! We’ve been celebrating the Christmas story through our EYFS–Y3 Nativity, Hey Ewe, and our Y4–6 Carol Concert. It is always a joy to welcome family and friends into our school for these performances, and the children thoroughly enjoyed sharing their work with an audience. All our pupils sang with enthusiasm and heartfelt joy as they celebrated the incredible news of Christ’s birth on that wondrous night in Bethlehem.

“Watching children sing and act out the true meaning of Christmas always has a big impact as the world pulls their attention to the presents or the magic, to them getting but seeing them giving, working together, being vulnerable and then sharing the heart of Christmas brings your heart back into focus of the gift of Jesus.”

Kat Archer (KS1 Parent)

“The wonderful song choices and children’s performances have left me reflecting on both the depth and beauty of the Christmas story, and also that the story is transformational for each one of us – young, old and in between.”

Kristian Tucker (KS2 Parent)

“It helped me remember that the real meaning of Christmas is Jesus’ birth.”

Eva (Year 5)

Advent Reconciliation Service 4/12/25

Fr Boniface joined us for Reconciliation yesterday. In our service to the whole school, we discussed that in Reconciliation, Jesus helps us wipe away anything that keeps his light from shining in us. The light that lit up the hall through the doorway helped pupils keep this clearly in their minds as they waited for their time with Fr Boniface.

“It made me feel not-guilty any more and free from the wrongs I’ve done.”

Grayson (Year 4)

“I felt happy and relieved to share what I’ve done wrong.”

Christelle (Year 5)

“It was nice that Father Boniface was with us because it showed the importance of what we were doing.”

Ruby (Year 6)

The Good Shepherd Celebration 25/6/25

Members of our liturgy team joined their peers from all the schools in our diocese last week for the annual 'Good Shepherd' liturgy, which took place at Arundel Cathedral. Our pupils enjoyed the time to reflect on how we can all be ‘Good Shepherds’ in our own lives. St Catherine's also brought a team of dancers who put on a showstopping performance after weeks of rehearsals! What a fantastic job everyone did in representing our school.

"It was really fun to perform for all the schools that were there and Bishop Richard, who was also very funny."

Eleanor (Year 5)

"It felt great to put on a good performance for everyone after all the hard work we put in."

Max (Year 5)