Welcome back and Happy New Year! I am sure that 2014 will see Copthorne continue to go from strength to strength and I am looking forward to welcoming everyone back for the new term ahead.
I do hope that you all had a wonderful holiday. I had a lovely Christmas relaxing with my family and catching up with friends which was great. Thank you so much for all the cards and presents that were given to the staff from the children. We were all very touched by your thoughtfulness and kindness.
Thanks also to everyone who came to see our gorgeous Year 1 children perform their nativity: Whoops a Daisy Angel. Thanks especially to all the staff and children who worked so hard to make the production outstanding. I was so proud of all the children for learning their lines, dances and songs so perfectly and giving such a wonderful performance. It really was a joy to watch.
Fond Farewell
At the end of last term, after working at Copthorne for 9 years, our caretaker – Mr Stan Seaman – made the decision to retire. We wish him a happy and healthy retirement and thank him for the work he has done for our school.
RE Week 
Our first week back is RE Week which will be launched with special assemblies on Monday. During the week we will be exploring a number of world religions, special books, places of worship and festivals to learn about what makes each religion special to its followers. We will discover the beliefs we share and will once again be finding out about the richness and value of religious diversity.
Portugal Visit
Next week several members of staff from Copthorne will be visiting Portugal as part of our Comenius Project. During the visit they will meet the staff representing the 9 other countries in the project, visit some Portuguese primary schools to share ideas and plan the visits to the remaining 6 countries (Romania, Lithuania, Spain, Greece, Turkey and the Netherlands) some of which will involve Copthorne pupils! There will be more about this exciting news once all the plans have been finalised. Until then we wish our staff a safe and enjoyable journey and look forward to their return.
Wishing you all a great start to the new year.
Mrs Shepherd