Dear Parents/Carers

I write to you at the end of a sad and difficult week for the JFS community.  Your children have helped to create a dignified and respectful atmosphere together with the staff at school.  At a time when emotions are running high, I have encouraged all of the student body to think about how they have self-compassion in order to help develop genuine consideration, not only towards their immediate friendship circles, but to those with whom they don’t regularly socialise.  It is only then that a society of real kindness can be sustained.

At school we have helped the students create structure around their sadness and grief through the support space in the Shul that has now come to an end, in the same way that a Shiva also reaches its conclusion.  The students have marked this by physically moving the memorial wall that has developed this week to a more central space in the school.  To mark the Shloshim, which will fall soon after the start of the summer term, the students will take down this memorial. They have chosen to replace it with something more permanent by planting a tree in our eco-garden.

With Shabbat approaching and at the initiative of the students, every student has today received Shabbat candles to light tonight.  I explained through a whole school online assembly, that we use candles as part of many rituals in Judaism, with Shabbat being the most regular and most well-known.

There is a dual purpose behind lighting Shabbat candles.  The first is to honour the Sabbath day itself and the second is to bring ‘Shalom Bayit’, domestic peace into the home.  JFS is our home and many of you in your letters and communications to me have referred to the school as a family.  Even if it is not your regular custom to do so, I invite you to light the Shabbat candles that the students have packaged and distributed today, in honour of Mia’s memory.  In this way you will be joining hundreds of JFS families in creating ‘Shalom Bayit’ – domestic peace across the JFS family.

Wishing you a peaceful and connected Shabbat.

Rachel Fink
Headteacher