Welcome to Mini Vinnies 2025/26

We have a very special group of children who will carry the Mini Vinnies pledge forward. We will meet each week after school to plan and deliver exciting activities and events and turn our concern into action, always thinking about people less fortunate than ourselves. 

🌎 Earth Day - Looking after our school grounds. 🌍


Our wonderful Mini Vinnies have been busy caring for our school community by taking part in litter picking and planting activities as we reflected on the importance of citizenship, especially around Earth Day. Through their actions, the children showed a deep sense of responsibility for looking after our shared environment and keeping our school grounds clean, green and welcoming for everyone. Inspired by the example of St Francis of Assisi and his love for creation, they embraced their mission to care for the world around them, recognising that even small acts can make a big difference. Their enthusiasm, teamwork, and commitment truly reflect the Mini Vinnies spirit of service and stewardship.

Easter Cards for the elderly

We are so proud of our wonderful Mini Vinnies, who are always thinking of ways to help and support others. By living out their Mini Vinnies Promise—to turn concern into action—they continue to show what it means to care for those around them in meaningful and thoughtful ways.

This Easter, they demonstrated this beautifully by creating handmade cards to share with residents at our local care home. Their kind and generous gesture will bring comfort, joy and a sense of connection to those who receive them. We are incredibly proud of their compassion and the way they put their faith into action within our community.

St Patrick's Day Celebration for Mary's Meals

Our Mini Vinnies recently hosted a wonderful St Patrick’s Day celebration for parents and families in support of Mary’s Meals. Inspired by the spirit of St Patrick, who dedicated his life to helping others and spreading kindness, our Mini Vinnies worked hard to serve their community with care and generosity. The event was a great success, with children from the Year 1 and 2 Irish Dancing Club delighting everyone with their lively dance routines, and our talented performing arts group performing a selection of beautiful Irish songs. Our Mini Vinnies were fantastic throughout, helping to organise refreshments and enthusiastically selling raffle tickets. It was a truly lovely afternoon, enjoyed by all while raising money for a very worthwhile cause.

One of our wonderful Mini Vinnies also kindly made some homemade cakes with her Grandma to donate to the afternoon. These were used for a “Guess the Weight” game and the lucky winners were delighted to take home the tasty treats.

Mary's Meals

We were delighted to welcome Fran into school to be part of our Celebration of the Word, where she spoke to the whole school about the incredible work she does with Mary’s Meals. Fran shared how this inspiring charity provides life-changing meals to children around the world, helping them gain an education and hope for the future. She also explained how our Mini Vinnies group, along with the rest of our school community,  can get involved by supporting fundraising efforts and spreading awareness. Her visit helped us reflect on our shared values of compassion, service and making a difference to others and we are very excited to take action together.

Collection for the homeless

Our  Mini Vinnies  decided it would be a wonderful idea to support people experiencing homelessness during the cold winter months. Thinking about their promise to “turn concern into action” and to “care for, respect and support others in need,” they recognised that many people are forced to sleep outside in very low temperatures and wanted to help them stay warm. With kindness and compassion, the group organised a collection of hats, gloves, and scarves, encouraging pupils and families to donate items they could spare. By living out their promise to “make a difference in our world,” the Mini Vinnies helped our school community come together to support those in need, bringing comfort, warmth, and hope during a difficult time.

Christmas Card Competition

The theme for the Christmas card competition this year is "To the Heights."

Celebrating love in action and reaching higher, inspired  by Saint Pier Giorgio Frassati's motto, "To the Heights" and the SVP spirit of helping others. The children designed cards to show the joy of Christmas, helping others and looking up to God's love. 

Wood Street Mission Appeal

We are incredibly proud of our Mini Vinnies, who have worked hard to collect and pack donated items for Wood Street Mission, a charity based in the city centre that supports families in need at Christmas time. With great enthusiasm and teamwork, the children gathered essential items and gifts, carefully sorting and packing them ready for delivery. Their kindness, generosity, and commitment to helping others truly reflect our school values and will make a real difference to families in our community this Christmas.

Thank you for your wonderful donations...

It was lovely to receive a thank you note from Wood Street Mission, expressing their gratitude for our generous donations. The message was a wonderful reminder of the difference our Mini Vinnies’ hard work and kindness have made and it meant a great deal to know that our support is truly appreciated and helping families in need.

 We worked closely with the Year 6 Faith in Action team to plan and lead the MacMillan Cake and Coffee Sale before and after school. Guided by our school values, we showed kindness by giving our time to help others, tried our best by organising and running the event carefully, and worked together as a team to make sure everything went smoothly. By combining our ideas and efforts, we created a welcoming and successful fundraiser that brought our school community together for a great cause.

 

To start another very special year for our wonderful Mini Vinnies, we invited Janet from the SVP Young Vincentian Development Office to come and meet the children during our Celebration of the Word. Janet spoke to the whole school about her important role and what it really means to be part of the Mini Vinnies group.

 

 

❤️ Welcome to Mini Vinnies 2024/25 ❤️

❤️ All Saints’ Mini Vinnies like to turn concern into action, inside and outside school! 

We meet fortnightly during lunchtime to pray together, talk about those around us that need our help and think of ways we can help them. ❤️

Some of our Mini Vinnies enjoyed a special afternoon with Ashland’s Care Home. We shared our favourite stories and enjoyed chatting to the lovely residents #MiniVinnies

Thank you to St Joseph's Sale for hosting our annual Mini Vinnies' Commissioning Mass. It was lovely to come together as a Catholic family of schools. We look forward to a year of turning concern into action.

Our Mini Vinnies group attended the annual Commissioning Mass at St Joseph’s Church. It was so lovely to come together with other Mini Vinnies from our community @MiniVinniesEW