Bloomfield Collegiate News (06/10/22)

Dear Parent/Guardian

We are now well and truly “back to school”, with a welcome return of all our extra-curricular and co-curricular activities. There is a lot going on, and I would like to draw your attention to a few important aspects of school life.

Dates for your Diary

School Gateway

You will have received details on how to sign up to our new school app, School Gateway. It is part of the integrated package that will work alongside Parent Pay and School Cloud. I am delighted that already over 50% of you have downloaded the app and registered. It will become our primary means of communication, and so I would encourage everyone to sign-up as soon as possible.

Prize Day

Prize day will be held at 1.30pm on Friday 28th October in Bloomfield Presbyterian Church. Our guest speaker is ex-pupil and actress Thaddea Graham. The school will be closed to pupils on that day. Details for prize-winners will follow.

Uniform

Order forms for school puffa jackets are available from Reception. Summer uniform should not now be worn.

Canteen Card

All pupils have been issued with a card which can be used in the school canteen as a payment method and is essential to substantially speed up queues. We are also looking at how these cards can be used to sign in and out of school for appointments. Please remind your daughter/ward that she should have her card with her in school at all times.

Replacement cards can be ordered from the Finance Office at a cost of £1.

Parking

Our location means that traffic in the morning and after school can be an issue, both for drivers and our neighbours. I would encourage as many pupils as possible to either use public transport or be dropped off a short walk away from school rather than cars entering Astoria Gardens or parking in Knockhill Park. Can I ask that anyone who needs to wait for a pupil in either street is mindful of access for our neighbours? Also, sightlines at the junction of Knockhill Park and King’s Road are poor; please avoid parking close to this junction as there have been a number of near misses when cars try on to the King’s Road. Thank you in anticipation for your help.

Pre-loved Uniform

The Friends of Bloomfield would like to say thank you to all the parents who have donated items of used uniform to the school over the years. There has been a long-standing supportive family culture of parents donating uniform that is no longer needed to school; donations go a long way in supporting both the practical and financial needs of the pupils. Further, all monies gained from the sale of items is reinvested in the school. In the past, money has been used to purchase IT equipment and help to support the wellbeing of pupils. Items of clothing are also used to stock the Changing Stations that were introduced last year as part of our Period Dignity Initiative. If you have uniform you wish to donate, simply place it in a bag and leave it at reception.

Lidl Schools Competition

Last year, Bloomfield were fortunate to be selected as one of 25 schools across Northern Ireland to benefit from the Lidl Sports for Good competition. This enabled us to buy sports equipment and hold seminars on mental health and physical fitness led by Olympian hockey player, Shirley McCay. We would appreciate your help in the nomination process this year. Follow this link for details: https://www.lidl-ni.co.uk/lidl-community-works

Pupil News

Congratulations to Harriet Eadie, Evie-Jade Gillespie (both Year 12) and Eva-Rose McGall (Year 13), who, as members of the JH Academy, have been selected to sing with Alfie Boe and Michael Ball at the Royal Albert Hall in London next week. What an amazing and unique experience for them.

Good luck to Rebecca Magee, Year 13, who is currently in Poland at the European Championship qualifying tournament with the Northern Ireland Under 19 Women’s football team. Their tournament kicked-off on Tuesday with a game against France, followed by matches against Republic of Ireland and the hosts.

A belated well done to Darcey Newell from Year 8. Darcey travelled to Waterford to compete at the Weightlifting Ireland National Age Group Championships earlier in September. She won her category and is now Ireland U13 National Weightlifting Champion. Brilliant!

Well done to our CCF shooting team who were placed second in the Fallen Plates category at a recent competition in Ballykinler.