Dear Families and Friends,

Easter has arrived - the most important and most joyful time in the Christian calendar. On Tuesday morning, our whole school family gathered for a special church service reflecting on the "passion" of Jesus. Together, we journeyed through two gardens and two kingdoms, exploring how God’s great story of love and redemption runs through both.

In the Garden of Eden, humanity’s story began with life, beauty, and choice. Yet it was also there that sin entered the world through one man’s disobedience, as Paul reminds us in Romans 5:12. But the story does not end there. In the Garden of Gethsemane, we see another man, Jesus, choose obedience and surrender to His Father’s will, even as He faced the Cross. Through His courage and love, a new hope was born. As Romans 5:19 tells us, “For just as through the disobedience of one man the many were made sinners, so through the obedience of one man the many will be made righteous.”

We reflected together on these two gardens as symbols of our own journey: from separation to salvation, from despair to grace. Through Jesus, God has planted a new Eden in every willing heart: a kingdom where mercy, forgiveness, and love can flourish. We then concluded the week with our usual Achievement Assembly, but taking time to consider what Jesus truly achieved for us on the Cross and how His victory gives meaning to all our smaller victories each day.

As NASA’s Artemis II mission launched towards the Moon, we had our own “out of this world” celebration right here at school. Families gathered to admire the fantastic entries for our space-themed Easter Egg Challenge - and what a show it was! This year’s creativity truly sparkled, making it one of our best displays yet. Congratulations to all our winners (shown below), and well done to every participant. Every single egg creation was so imaginative, earning plenty of House Points too!

Our wonderful PTA helped make the annual event extra special by including the raffle draw for a sought-after Jellycat Space Bunny! Although not everyone took home a prize, everyone shared in the spirit of fun and fellowship.

Just as the four astronauts journey onward to the Moon, we now head into a two-week school break - ready to rest, recharge, and reflect. Easter reminds us that after every Good Friday there comes an Easter Sunday; after every challenge, new hope and life await. Let’s carry that message of renewal and joy with us into the holidays, enjoying time with family and friends, and celebrating the light of Christ that shines in every season.

Happy Easter to all our pupils and families. May it be filled with peace, laughter, and a little heavenly wonder!

Yours sincerely,
Mr Restall & The St Bart’s Team

Two Gardens, Two Kingdoms

Two gardens, two kingdoms, one great story told,
One whispers about our sin, one shouts that grace is bold.

The first was full of beauty, with rivers, trees and light,
But one important “no” to God turned daytime into night.

God gave a clear instruction, His word was kind and true,
But Adam chose his own way, and death came crashing through.

Through one man’s disobedience, sin spread to everyone,
The kingdom dark of guilt and fear was all that we had won.

The second garden’s quieter, beneath a starry sky,
There Jesus kneels in sorrow and lifts a trembling cry.

A cup of pain before Him, the cross just ahead too,
Yet Jesus prays, “Your will be done - Father, I’ll follow You.”

Through this man’s full obedience, God’s rescue plan began,
His kingdom bright of grace and life was opened up to man.

Two gardens, two great choices, two kingdoms side by side,
In Eden we turned away from God, from Gethsemane He died.

In Adam we were broken, in Jesus we are new,
Two gardens, two great kingdoms - Lord, help us walk with You.