Bishop Visits Holy Family School, Swindon

Holy Family Catholic Primary School, Swindon, has been celebrating its success with a special visitor. Bishop Declan visited the school in Park North, Swindon to help celebrate their achievements.

Two years ago the school was put in to special measures, but this only lasted 15 months, one of the quickest turn-rounds seen in the country.

Bishop Declan celebrated Mass in the Holy Family Catholic Church together with Monsignor Canon Jeremy Rigden, Parish Priest, and Monsignor Canon Richard Twomey. The Mass was led by the 250 children from the school, who were in particularly good voice and supported by a good turn-out of parents and parishioners, all coming together to celebrate the work of the school.

After the Mass, Bishop Declan returned to the school with the children and took part in a tree planting ceremony to commemorate his visit. This was followed by a tour of the entire school including the refurbished junior section and the new computer suite.

Mary Barnard, the Headteacher said: “The church was packed and the Bishop was really impressed by everything he saw. He talked to the children about their work and was very interested in how we have managed to turn the school around. It's been very hard work and there is still work to be done, but we now have very high standards throughout the school.”

Bishop Declan said: “As is often the case when I visit Swindon, I received a warm welcome from the School Community. It was good to be able to share in celebrating Holy Family's success, which is due to hard work by Pupils, Staff, Governors, Parents and many other people involved in the life of this school.”

To finish the day of celebration, all the school children received a commemorative prayer card as a memento of this important visit.

Chris Davies