Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle
The Education department of Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle support our catholic schools in their spiritual and educational development and carry out religious inspections. The inspection reviews, evaluates and plans further improvements in the school’s witness to the Catholic faith and Curriculum Religious Education. This process begins with the school’s own self-evaluation. The inspection schedule follows criteria set by the National Board of Advisers and Inspectors.
Our Parish
The Friends of St. Matthew’s, Jarrow
The Friends of St. Matthew’s, Jarrow (or FOSM for short) is the Parents and Teachers’ Association (PTA) for our wonderful school.
We are a voluntary group of parents and carers of current pupils whose mission is to provide resources, equipment and events which enhance the education and extra-curricular activity of the pupils of St. Matthew’s Catholic Primary School in Jarrow. We are also a Registered Charity, Number
1196146.
To achieve our mission, we work closely with the teaching and support staff to ensure that events
we provide and equipment we purchase are in line with the needs and wishes of the pupils and
wider school. Some of our regular events include the Summer Fayre, Christmas activities and
supporting the purchase of Year 6 Leavers’ Hoodies. We also run after-school clubs, hold one-off
events such as Movie Nights and Treat Fridays, and support in-school projects such as playground
developments.
We have a core group of three trustees and a pool of regular volunteers who carry out a wide variety
of tasks from helping out at events, maintaining our social media account and taking the notes at our
meetings.
As a committee, we meet regularly to plan projects, develop our ideas and set fundraising targets,
with four formal Committee Meetings taking place a year. You can read more about our work in our FOSM Annual Report 2022 FINAL. To keep up to date with our news and events, please like and
follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/FOSMJarrow
We are always looking for new volunteers and for ideas to be shared with us, so if you would like to
find out more, please send us a message via Facebook @FOSMjarrow or by emailing
fosmjarrow@gmail.com.
Chair: Victoria Sheraton
Treasurer: Anne Thomas (Co-opted)
Secretary: Rachel Thompson-Chapman
Our Parish
St. Matthew’s Catholic Primary serves the parish of St. Matthew’s Catholic Church in Jarrow, which is part of the Jarrow Cluster of Catholic Churches.
We have very close links with St. Matthew’s Church and the cluster, holding School Masses in Church and visiting regularly. We invite ,members of the parish to attend events in school where possible. We also have a very strong Sacramental Preparation Programme, which is led by wonderful volunteer catechists from the Parish.
The history of St. Matthew’s is fascinating – please see below for more information:
https://jarrowcatholic.org.uk/history/A%20History%20of%20St%20Matthews%20-%20latest.pdf
The four Cluster Parish Primary Schools – St. Matthews, St. Joseph’s, St. Bede’s and St. Mary’s, also work closely together. Pupils from all schools hold discussions on important issues with our clergy and also come together to provide events such as ‘The Big Sing’ during Advent.
Please see the site below for more information about the Jarrow Cluster of Catholic Churches:
https://jarrowcatholic.org.uk/index.php
