Our November began with a fabulous achievement. Mrs Findlay and our ECO Warriors earned our school our 3rd ECO Flag! A fantastic achievement. Coupled with this the ECO Warriors have also affected real change in North Lanarkshire Council. Working with NLC Single Plastic Usage Team our dining school no longer offers disposable plastic water bottles, we have re-usable cups instead. We also no longer have plastic sandwich covers. This is a superb way forward to helping save our planet. Our pupils cheered when they were told of the changes they had requested were to become a reality. HUGE congratulations to Mrs Findlay and her trusty warriors.

Meanwhile Primary 4 had a very exciting November, they treated us to an outstanding assembly journeying through Ancient Egypt. The assembly entertained our whole school community and P4 families in song, dance and an incredible range of knowledge. AMAZING Primary 4. The Assembly was the culmination of their Inter Disciplinary Topic. Our children also enjoyed a range of learning in and out of class, we’ve had Egyptian treasure hunts and  sand searches in Motherwell and a wonderful day was spent at Kelvingrove Art gallery and Museum where the children met a MUMMY!

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On 5th and 6th November our school and nursery  were visited by a number of visitors from across North Lanarkshire. We enjoyed a Validated Self Evaluation (VSE). This was a most positive experience and did indeed validate our own self evaluation. Here are the key strengths as identified in our final report:

• The strong leadership of the head teacher, which is supporting effective teamwork and the collaborative professional working of all staff.
• The nurturing, highly-inclusive ethos in the nursery and at the primary stages, which enables all children to feel a strong sense of belonging. This is underpinned, in the school, by gospel values and the diversity within the community and the drive of the head teacher.
• The teamwork between senior leaders who work well together in fulfilling their roles very effectively, and provide a significant level of support and guidance to the school and nursery community.
• Relationships which are strong at all levels, with pupils complimenting staff on their approachability and caring nature. Staff displayed a very good knowledge of their pupils and their context.
• The confident, respectful, articulate children, who are eager to learn and are proud of their school.
• The wide range of leadership opportunities at classroom and whole-school levels where children were developing skills for learning, life and work.

The learning in our school was highly acclaimed:

• Almost all children engage positively in their learning, they behave very well and listen very well to their teachers and peers.
• In the best lessons observed there was evidence of creative, stimulating and innovative approaches that engaged learners and provided challenge.
• Teacher explanations and instructions are clear and the majority of learners’ experiences are matched to their needs and interests.
• Almost all children are confident in their use of digital technologies.
• In the nursery, staff show nurturing relationships and very good knowledge of the children, displaying a warm and welcoming approach to children and families into the setting.
• Staff in the nursery class and school know the children and families well and understand the socio-economic context of the local community. All staff are committed to promoting equity across learning for all children in an inclusive ethos.
• The wide range of opportunities through ‘Come Clubbing @ Cathedral’ benefits all pupils and enables them to be a valued part of the school community.
• There is a targeted approach to ensure that the most disadvantaged children have access to opportunities for wider achievement.

Our next steps moving forward in our continuous improvement include:

• Introduction of a Nursery Improvement Plan from the beginning of session 2020/21.
• A focus on Q.I. 2.3 in School Improvement Plan for session 2020/21.
• Collaborative work with other schools and nurseries.

We are very proud of the outcome of our VSE. One comment from the Lead Officer sums it all up. He stated:

‘If my children were still of primary school age, I would be bringing them to this school’

Well done to every pupil in our school and nursery and a huge thanks to our fabulous staff team, they are amazing.

In November there was great excitement in P5a. Mairead Ross was the proud winner of an E Christmas Card competition across North Lanarkshire. Mairead’s prize included £250 of vouchers for Mairead to spend in Motherwell Shopping Centre, an additional £250 for the school to spend and Mairead was the STAR attraction at Motherwell Christmas Light Switch On.

Mairead proudly took her place on stage accompanied by Provost Jean Jones and ‘Anton’ of Love Island fame. This was a very special occasion. We all enjoyed a lovely evening in Motherwell, a real carnival atmosphere. It was great to  see so many of Mairead’s family there and such a great number of children (and staff) all coming out to celebrate Mairead’s success.

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In the true spirit of Christmas Mairead asked that a substantial sum of her winnings be donated to Motherwell Food bank to help those in need of food at this time of year. What a beautiful gesture, we are so very proud of Mairead.

Meanwhile down in the nursery…..

It’s a pictorial representation of all that’s going on in the nursery, just for a wee change.

As always, thanks for reading and sharing in our great work. If you’d like to leave a comment or two, we’d love to hear from you.

Mrs Shields