Catholic Life

We are a Catholic Primary School in the Archdiocese of Liverpool, clear in our beliefs and values, and the importance of Jesus Christ in our daily lives.

Our Mission Statement underpins all we do:

“Living, Loving and Learning in Jesus.”

OLBE is a place of love and learning, where all are equal in the eyes of God. It is the mission of this school to cherish each individual. We try to follow Jesus’ example as a friend and guide. We believe that there are talents and strengths within us all, and we strive to let them shine brightly. Our school is a thriving community which is well supported by parents and the Parish.

“I want to thank Mrs Davidson and all the staff for the way they help the children to integrate Christian values into ordinary everyday living. In turn I also want to thank you, the parents, for all the support you give your children and encourage you to become more and more involved in the life of the school and the parish.”

Father Tim Buckley

Our Lady of the Annunciation Bishop Eton

Parents Voice: Summary Comments

Live Simply

In 2020, we achieved the Live Simply award, responding to Pope Francis’ invitation in Laudato Si’ to “work with generosity and tenderness in protecting this world which God has entrusted to us”. As a Catholic community, we answer to the call of us to care for our common home and stand in solidarity with our sisters and brothers around the world. Our aim is to protect this world which God has entrusted to us.

To continue on our journey, we have a wonderful Live Simply Council at Our Lady’s Bishop Eton school. We consistently work to implement our mission of living sustainably with creation.

In Autumn one we discussed how we can encourage our whole school to continue living in solidarity with others and sustainably with creation. Live Simply members have discussed ways they can look after our local environment with their class and created whole-class pledges. We discussed and shared these in assembly. Live Simply members also announced our Just One Tree Old Clothes Day; the whole school were invited to re-wear old clothes, swap with someone else, buy from a charity shop or wear something homemade! Each £1 donated for taking part is being used by Just One Tree; this is a non-profit charity removing CO2 from the atmosphere through global reforestation. As a school community, we raised £250. This takes our tree total to 831! Our Live Simply team will be promoting how we are now a ‘Planet Hero School’ after half term!

In Autumn two, Our Live Simply team reflected on our mission statement of Living, Learning and Loving in Jesus and connected it to our Catholic Social Teachings. During Switch off Fortnight, they encouraged their classmates and teachers to save electricity when it was not needed by turning lights, interactive boards, computers and laptops off before break, lunch and at the end of the day. They have continued going forth with this aim beyond the two weeks. Our Live Simply members collected donated jumpers and held Christmas Jumper Swap Shops outside of school each morning in the run up to Christmas Jumper Day. They encouraged everyone to consider their carbon footprint, and to slow down fast fashion, by not buying a brand new Christmas jumper this year.

During Spring one, a member of our Live Simply team in Year 4 has been inspired by the values of himself and his friends. One boy helped to save a bee that was struggling on our yard. They even took it home and nurtured it back to health. This inspired the Live Simply member in his class, and his friends, to start a raffle raising money for our local environment in school. They completed their own environmental research about the importance of bees for our environment and spoke to Mrs Davidson about their mission, using our Live Simply values.

Our Live Simply team met at the beginning of Spring 2 to prepare for British Science Week. With each class across the school investigating different substances in water, they reminded their classmates of the United Nations goal for everyone having the right to Clean Water and Sanitation by 2030. They led the reading of scripture and prayers, and reminded their class of Pope Francis’ words from Laudato Si that water is a basic and universal human right. They used our live simply mission of living in solidarity with others to organise another Old Clothes Day to live sustainably and raise money for CAFOD to help those in need of water aid, globally.

Our Year 4 Live Simply member, who organised a raffle with his classmates, raised £108 to go towards bug houses and bird feeders for our school grounds so that, locally, we can live simply and sustainably with creation. The Live Simply team met at the end of the spring term to choose these items and think about where they can go around school at the beginning of the summer term.

In the first summer half term to remember Pope Francis, our Live Simply members met and reminded ourselves about his important encyclical: Laudato si’. We reflected on Laudato Si and looked at how it has been 10 years since Pope Francis wrote this and how it is still vital that we look after our common home and live simply.

Pope Francis invited us to see nature as a magnificent book in which God speaks to us and grants us a glimpse of his infinite beauty and goodness. .

Going forth from this, we bought new items for our garden area that the boys in Year 4 had raised money for with their raffle last term. We went outside and chose areas to put our bird feeders, bug and insect houses. We are going to check on these often next term.

We put up our Live Simply posters on each class door to remind everyone of our mission and links to our Catholic Social Teachings of Living Simply, Sustainably and in Solidarity with those in need or poverty.

Charitable Work

At Our Lady’s Bishop Eton we work hard to contribute and raise money for different charities which mean a lot to us. Please explore this page to see some of the charity work we have done recently.

Autumn One 2024:

This half term, our school community came together in several important ways. We raised £284.40 for Alder Hey through a raffle and £394 from our Change for Change campaign on Family Fast Day. Our welcome mass was a joyful time for reflection, and we look forward to having other year groups visit church for mass next term. These activities have helped strengthen our sense of unity – coming together to help contribute to our wider community.

Autumn Two 2024:

This half term, our school community has engaged in various activities that have brought us closer together while helping others. We held an Old Clothes Day to support the One Tree campaign, collecting £1 donations, and participated in a two-week Switch Off Fortnight to promote living simply. Year 4 students took part in a litter-picking initiative to improve our school environment, and Year 6 joined parishioners for a lunchtime service at church. Our Mini Vinnies group made Christmas decorations for our school tree, and we supported several charitable causes, including a food bank collection, the Mission Christmas Toy Bank appeal, and a Christmas Jumper Swap Shop. We also enjoyed carol singing at the Sisters of Notre Dame and took part in the Liverpool Hope University Christmas Carol Service, while celebrating Advent at Our Lady of the Annunciation – Bishop Eton. These activities have helped foster a strong sense of community and service within our school.

Spring One 2025:

This term, our OLBE community has been actively living out our faith through worship, service, and stewardship. Year 5 pupils participated in lunchtime Mass at Our Lady of the Annunciation – Bishop Eton, with some children serving and others bringing up the offertory. Our Mini Vinnies championed the SVP Christmas Card competition, encouraging creative entries across the school.

Year 4 students embraced their faith by taking part in the Holy Communion Badge Competition, with the winning design set to be shared across the archdiocese. They also demonstrated care for creation by organizing a raffle to fund bughouses for our school and support the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Charity.

As we welcomed the Jubilee Year, our whole school gathered in prayer and liturgy, reflecting on the theme Pilgrims of Hope and producing meaningful work in response. Meanwhile, Year 6 pupils have been hard at work creating a video to showcase Catholic life at OLBE.

Through faith, service, and community, we continue to grow together in Christ.

Spring Two 2025:

The OLBE community continued to live out our Catholic faith through acts of service, kindness, and reflection. Year 4 wrote thank-you cards for the sixth-form students who led our Islam workshop, while the Mini Vinnies created Jubilee models for prayer and liturgy tables, encouraging classes to keep the Jubilee in their prayers. Following our prayer and liturgy with Father Tim, some children visited each class to explain the meaning of Lent and Ash Wednesday, and administered the Ashes.

Parents and children came together to knit hearts for end-of-life patients at Liverpool Royal Hospital, symbolising solidarity and compassion. Year 3 students wrote Eid cards to the Penny Lane Mosque, strengthening relationships with our neighbours. Year 4 boys raised £108 through a raffle for bug houses to support local nature, while Year 5 led our prayer and liturgy for the Feast of the Annunciation.

Mini Vinnies also visited the Sisters of Notre Dame, learning about their vocations, and the whole school took part in the CAFOD Big Lenten Walk, raising funds to fight global poverty. We came together to celebrate Mass with Father Tim in preparation for Easter, deepening our connection to the resurrection.

Summer One 2025:

At the start of Summer 1, the OLBE community came together in joy to celebrate the Easter season and the hope of Christ’s resurrection. Our ‘He Has Risen’ Day on 25th April was a highlight, giving children the chance to reflect on the meaning of new life through a special Prayer and Liturgy.

To mark the joy and light of Easter, pupils wore bright colours alongside their uniforms, adding a spirit of celebration to the day. As part of our Easter project, children visited churches and cathedrals with their families, creating posters and artwork inspired by their experiences. These thoughtful creations were shared in class and displayed in a school gallery, reminding us all of the beauty and renewal that Easter brings.

The Mini Vinnies continued to work closely with the SVP group as they develop a project to strengthen relationships with the wider community. They have also recruited the help of the Pupil Council, who are busily creating Jubilee models to mark this special year. We look forward to joining other schools at the Anglican Cathedral for an ecumenical Pentecost service—celebrating unity, diversity, and the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Jubilee 2025 Pilgrims of Hope

This year, we are celebrating the Jubilee, a time of reflection, renewal, and action. Guided by the themes of food poverty, modern slavery, care for creation, managing debt, forgiveness, and rest, we are invited to renew our hope in God’s love and to put Catholic Social Teaching into practice. Pope Francis has called this year ‘Pilgrims of Hope,’ encouraging us to be signs of hope for others, particularly those facing hunger, injustice, and hardship. On Friday 24th January, we launched our Jubilee journey with a whole-school CAFOD prayer and liturgy, where Year 5 led us in readings and reflections on these themes. Following the liturgy, the children returned to their classrooms to read and respond to books that explore the Jubilee themes, helping to deepen their understanding and personal connection to this important year. As a school, we all pledge to be pilgrims of hope and together, staff and children have many wonderful ideas of how to spread this important message of hope.