On Friday 2nd October 2026, our St Sebastian’s community came together to support CAFOD Family Fast Day and once again, our families showed just how kind, caring and generous our school community is.

As part of the day, we invited families to support CAFOD's work around the world, whilst also collecting food and essential items for families who may be experiencing difficult times a little closer to home.

We are delighted to share that we raised a wonderful £89.23 for CAFOD! This money will help support communities around the world facing poverty and hardship. Alongside this, we received a fantastic collection of food and essential items for our local Food Bank.

Faith Friends Visit the Joseph Lappin Centre

On Wednesday 7th October 2026, some of our wonderful Faith Friends, accompanied by Mrs Rabbette and Ms Mello, visited the Joseph Lappin Centre to deliver the donations so kindly given by our families.

Whilst there, the children had the opportunity to learn more about the centre, the important work it does for our local community and, perhaps most importantly, the story behind its name.

The centre is named in loving memory of Joseph Lappin, a young boy from our local community who sadly lost his life at just 16 years old. Our children took time to reflect on Joseph's story and how his memory continues to inspire something so positive, bringing people together, offering kindness and support and making a real difference to the lives of local families.

It was a particularly meaningful part of their visit, helping our children understand how a community can come together to remember someone special and create something that continues to bring hope, care and opportunities to others.

One of the loveliest parts of the visit actually happened on the journey back to school. Mrs Rabbette and Ms Mello shared how lovely it was to hear the children chatting amongst themselves about their experience. They were talking about:

• how good it felt to give something back to their community
• how important it is to help others, and
• how they wanted to be good examples to those around them.

What made this even more special was that nobody had asked them to have these conversations. They were simply reflecting on what they had experienced and how it had made them feel. As Headteacher, hearing moments like this makes me incredibly proud! We can talk to our children about kindness, compassion and helping others, but when they begin to recognise the importance of these things for themselves, that is when we know our school motto is truly coming to life.

At St Sebastian’s, our motto reminds us:  “Guided by Christ, inspired by St Sebastian: Only my best will do. Be kind to one another.” These are not simply words we want our children to remember. We want them to understand what they mean and, most importantly, show them through their everyday actions.

Jesus reminds us in Matthew's Gospel: “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.” – Matthew 25:35

Our CAFOD Family Fast Day and the visit to the Joseph Lappin Centre are lovely examples of our children putting these teachings into practice. They are also wonderful examples of Catholic Social Teaching, reminding us of the importance of recognising the dignity of every person, caring for those in need and understanding that we all have a responsibility to look after one another.

Thank You, St Sebastian’s!

I would like to say a heartfelt thank you to all our families for supporting CAFOD Family Fast Day. Whether you donated food, contributed towards our £89.23 fundraising total or simply took the time to talk to your child about why we were helping others, it really does make a difference.

A special well done to our Faith Friends, who represented our school so beautifully, and thank you to Mrs Rabbette and Ms Mello for accompanying the children and making the visit such a meaningful experience.

Thank you also to everyone at the Joseph Lappin Centre for welcoming our children and for the fantastic work you continue to do for our local community.

Sometimes it is the smallest moments that remind us why we do what we do. Hearing that our children returned to school talking about the joy of helping others was certainly one of those moments.

We are so proud of our St Sebastian’s community. Not just for the money raised or the donations collected, but for the kindness, compassion and genuine care for others that made it all possible.

You can find out more about the Joseph Lappin Centre and the work they do by visiting their website.