Dear Parents / Carers,

Tomorrow, Tuesday, 15th October representatives from Cardinal Newman College;  Runshaw College;  Preston’s College;  Myerscough; Blackburn and Training 2000 will be in the LRC at lunch time to answer any questions pupils have regarding their post 16 options. Please encourage your child to ‘drop in’, especially year 11 pupils as the deadline for their post 16 applications is 6^th December. It’s a fantastic opportunity for them to get their questions answered. 

Many thanks for your support.

Mrs L Pilling

Assistant Head Teacher

Dear Parent / Carer,

Following the sad and sudden news of Miss Spruyt’s death last week, I am now in a position to share details of the funeral.

It will be held at Christ Church, Wyresdale Rd, Lancaster LA1 3EA, at 2pm on Thursday, 17 October.

Miss Spruyt was a dedicated teacher and a gifted Mathematician, who had been at St Mary’s since 2011. Understandably, her loss has been keenly felt by staff and pupils. I have had requests from many members of staff that they would like to attend the funeral and pay their respects. Both the Governors and I are happy to grant these requests, but as a consequence, school will close on Thursday, 17 October at 11:30am.

We will run the normal school day for Periods 1 and 2, and have breaktime to allow pupils to get something to eat. Pupils in receipt of Free School Meals will also be able to receive their food at this time. School buses have been altered to allow for an 11:30am pick-up. As a result of this unplanned closure, you may wish for your child to remain on school premises until the regular finish time of 3pm. We can accommodate this as some staff will still be on site, but whilst we can supervise your child, I must stress that they will not be in formal lessons. Similarly, they would not be allowed off site until 3pm, and we will not be able to provide any food after breaktime has ended. In addition, school buses will only run at 11:30am. If you would like your child to stay in school, please inform the main office using the usual contact methods by Tuesday, 15 October 3pm.

We are planning to hold a memorial service for Miss Spruyt after half-term, which all in our community will have the opportunity to attend. Miss Spruyt’s family have indicated that they would be happy for pupils to attend the funeral service. Whilst we understand that Miss Spruyt’s loss is deeply felt across our whole community, can I ask parents to consider carefully whether they wish to remember Miss Spruyt and support her family through prayer and reflection at home, or by attending the funeral in person. Should your child wish to attend the funeral, please ensure that they are in full school uniform and accompanied by a responsible adult. Unfortunately, transport to and from Lancaster cannot be provided by school.

Miss Spruyt’s family have set-up a Just Giving page and would ask that you consider contributing to the fund. The page can be found at: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/timi-fund?utm_term=X6874mY7x

Please continue to remember Miss Spruyt and her family in your prayers.

Yours sincerely,                                                     

Mr P Thompson

Headteacher