Reminder - school reopens on Monday 8th April at 10.43 am for all students.

Kind regards, School Office

Want to stay warm while showing school spirit? The PSA has organized some cozy embroidered HCETSS logo hoodies for €27 each.

 Hoodie colour options include dark green, navy blue, bright blue, and black. We also have inclusive sizing from X Small to 3XL.

 To place an order please send an email to psa@hcetss.ie with the following information:

 Size and Colour hoodie you prefer

Student's Name and Base Classroom

 Once your order is placed, the PSA will send you an email confirmation and you will be billed through the HCETSS app. All orders will be shipped to the school and delivered to your student in their base classroom.

 A portion of every sale is donated to the school to purchase school equipment.

 The PSA thanks you for your continued support!

Dear parents, guardians,

Please note that no students are permitted to leave school at lunchtime to access shops, local park etc.

Students who have medical/dental appointments etc. must sign out and back in at school office and parent/guardian must notify the school in advance via the school app.

Thank you for your support with this important school protocol.

Kind regards,

Padraig Conaty, Principal

Dear Parents/Guardians,

We trust this letter finds you all well. We are reaching out to update you on various aspects relating to our school.

ISPCC Parent Workshops

We are delighted to be partnered with ISPCC for the delivery of their Smart Moves First Year Programme and their Shield Anti-Bullying Programme for all year groups.

As part of this partnership, please see below webinars to which HCETSS parents and guardians can register. These webinars coincide with Safer Internet Day 2024 ‘Don’t teach your kids to fear the online world, teach them to navigate It’. These webinars aim to support our parents/ guardians and their child/children to be safe online.

This two-part series will focus on:

•              Recognising ways to interact with your child’s online world and day to day experiences

•              Reflect on how you might support your child to navigate the online world

•              Implementing digital boundaries

•              Guidance on how to deal with cyberbullying and upsetting content online

•              Practical solutions and tips to help your child stay safe online

The first webinar on the 7th of February at 7.00pm-8.00pm is for parents/guardians - see link below to register:

https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/8105347c-5f00-44b3-ae47-a3cff16a7020@bb926d5e-af5f-4830-b812-e4d184987285 

The second webinar on the 8th of February at 7.00-7.30pm is for our students and their parents/guardians - see link below to register:

https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/343f8cd4-98e5-43c6-8d72-d03944ff468e@bb926d5e-af5f-4830-b812-e4d184987285

 Library

Our wonderful school library is open during the school day and Mondays - Thursdays for after-school study. Please see below link for more information. A huge thanks to our PSA for all the help and practical support in enabling us to set up this special space in our school. https://hcetsslibrary.wixsite.com/website-1

Punctuality & Attendance

This term, we are running an attendance and punctuality competition within each year group with prizes for the base class within each year group with the best attendance and punctuality and also prizes for the best individual students.

We are particularly focused on the small number of our students who in Term 1 arrived less than five minutes late on a regular basis. As adults, we all know that a big part of achieving success is simply showing up, on a consistent basis. Positive educational outcomes are directly correlated to attendance, punctuality and engagement in school and we want to support all students to develop healthy habits around their education.

If your child is late for school due to an unforeseen factor, please contact the school that morning via our app, not via email. For students who accumulate numerous unexplained lates, your child’s tutor or Year coordinator will be in contact regarding a school sanction of a lunchtime detention or an after-school community service. Please speak to your child and encourage them to get into good routines around punctuality. Your child’s tutor is also available to support your child if they find it difficult to get to school on time. Please reach out to them if necessary. Finally, if your child is absent from school, please notify Alex via our school app not via email.

 Bike Parking

If your child cycles to school, they must have a lock for their bike. We had a number of bikes stolen from campus last year and want to avoid the same happening again this year. Please speak to your child if they do cycle to school about the importance of them locking their bike to the bike rack every day.

 Chewing Gum

Reminder that our campus is a chewing gum free zone for all students and staff.

Lockers

 Every student in our school have been assigned a locker and their own dial lock. This locker is to be used to store school materials, sports gear etc. These locks remain the property of HCETSS. There is a cost of €15 for any student who loses their lock so please do emphasise to your child the importance of them taking responsibility for their school property. All phones must be switched off and locked in the locker before 8.20am each morning. All valuables, monies etc. should also be locked away. Headphones and earphones are not allowed during the school day. If your child wears headphones or earphones into school, please remind them that these items must be locked away before 8.20am.

 Journals

Please check your child’s journal at least once per week to check that they are recording their homework, Classroom Based Assessment details (CBAs) and project deadlines. While tutors carry out random spot-checks on a regular basis, your child may also need your support to help them manage their learning, deadlines and workload. This is all part of supporting them to take responsibility for their learning. Every student must have their journal with them for every school lesson. Any lost journals need to be replaced at a cost of €15.

 Classrooms & Break-time

Students now have access to their base classroom at break-time as well at lunchtime. This means that all students have access to a warm indoor space during the winter months. To aid the smooth and ordered running of the school, students can only access their own base classroom at break and lunch-time and if eating inside, they must use the bins provided. Each class have a student rota of student classroom managers who are responsible for ensuring their classroom is kept neat and tidy. Again, our aim here is to promote student autonomy and independence.

 Extra & Co-curricular

Our Term 2 extra and co-curricular programme is now available on our website. If your child has not yet had an opportunity to join one of our fantastic lunchtime or after school clubs or sports teams, please encourage them to get involved. It is never too late! Involvement in such clubs has a direct impact on the sense of belonging which your child will have to their school and by extension, will help to boost their wellbeing. https://www.hcetss.ie/co-curricular-activities

Thank you again for all that you do to help our school community thrive and flourish.

Kind regards,

Pádraig Conaty, Principal         

Mick Heffernan, Deputy Principal

Reminder - As per our calendar, the school will close early on Thursday 14.03 at 2.55pm to facilitate Parent Teacher meeting. There are no after school clubs on that day.

School will be closed on 15/03/2024 and on Monday 18/03/2024 (Bank Holiday)

Please note that the term ends on Friday 22/03/2024 at 12.00 noon.

Kind regards, School Office

Dear parents/guardians, 

Please see attached important information from the HSE regarding measles.

Kind regards, School Office

No training for boys after school tomorrow Tues. 5th March. 

Dear parents/ guardians,

Please see below link to our school magazine which gives a snapshot into the wonderful school community which your child a part of:

https://sway.cloud.microsoft/ZMp7M5DW7wgXPzRO?loc=play&ref=Link

Kind regards, School Office

1st & 2nd year teams will train together before their next matches. Times tbc.