This year’s eagerly-anticipated St Kate’s Day went down a treat with students, staff and Old Girls alike.
Students’ accounts from both ends of the School spectrum
“We started the day off with a Eucharist, a tradition that has been going on for generations. The whole school gathered in the Yolande Paterson Hall (YPH) to honour the gracious St Katherine. As prayers echoed through our hearts and hymns chanted our name, we knew that it was time to rejoice, to shine through the darkness. This year, we had a special guest who recently won the national diversity award, Revd Mark Nam. He talked to us about his life and how he became a vicar. Then to wrap it all up, we had bread (wafer) dipped in wine and the school hymn to put the cherry on top.
After enjoying our KitKats, we gathered on the tennis courts for the famous 2p race, where students lay coins in patterns in support of the School’s chosen charity for 2025-26, Long Covid Kids. We made a long chain of letters spelling LCK on the floor with all the coins we had gathered. We managed to make an impressive 84 LCKs just in time. After that, we created many different pictures out of coins for the creative race.
Following the 2p races, we collected our tokens for many games and stalls set up around the School. There were stalls where we could earn a haul of sweets or get some lovely nails done. Believe it or not, we could also purchase wet sponges to throw at teachers.
The Juniors also hosted the school bake sale in Old School Hall. We all made a sweet treat of any kind to sell at our stall (making sure to note any ingredients that students could be allergic to), as volunteers took it in turns to man the stall. This was a very nice detail so everyone could get something to enjoy while wandering around the remaining stalls.
After lunch (with an English breakfast theme), we eagerly rushed to YPH where the Sixth Form play had started. The play was based on ‘High School Musical’ which everyone thoroughly enjoyed! However, the bonus was the showing of some special ‘TikTok’ style videos made by teachers that had our eyes glued to the screen.
There were also the House netball matches. Each House came together to compete as a team in either a netball or a dodgeball match. The Juniors chose dodgeball, a fun and energetic way to build teamwork and cheer on our classmates. As we finished a bit early, we then got to watch the older girls in their match and that completed the day. It was such a fun-filled St Kate’s Day and we are excited for the one next year!”
Arya and Emma (Y6)
“For the Upper Sixth, St Kate’s Day is a particularly special occasion – a chance to celebrate our time at St Helen’s, to feel a deep sense of connection to the School, and to recognise that it marks the beginning of our farewells. Guest speaker Revd Mark Nam and the singing of the school hymn set a strong tone of community and belonging, which continued throughout the day.
After finishing the 2p race in support of the charity Long Covid Kids, we all came together for a dance on the netball courts to some of our favourite songs, including Mr Brightside and Hot ‘n Cold. The music, dancing and laughter carried into the play we performed: High School Musical with a St Helen’s twist. Over the past few months, an incredible group of Upper Sixth students created hilarious memes and TikToks, and wrote a brilliant script to create a performance filled with lots of inside jokes and special memories. Our year group came together to bring the play to life, finishing it off with “We’re all in this together!” with lyrics adapted to reflect our time at St Helen’s – what the School means and what we love about it.
Tate (U6)
St Kate’s Day Social
St Kate’s Day didn’t end with the school bell! In the evening, we were delighted to welcome our alumnae to this year’s St Kate’s Day social, held at Smiths of Smithfield in London. It was a pleasure to meet several generations of alumnae in person, mixing so wonderfully together and sharing memories. Read more about the reunited HelKats here.
St Kate’s Day reflections from our guest speaker, Revd Mark Nam
“Who are saints? To be honest, they can seem distant – frozen in stained glass, halos around their heads, heroic, the kinds of people who never had bad hair days or identity crises. But truth be told – saints were real people. Young, often uncertain, living through complicated times. You see, what sets saints apart is not perfection. It’s courage. Courage to stand in who they were called to be. Courage to live truthfully. Courage not to shrink. That’s why saints matter today – they remind us that identity is not something you perform. It’s something you inhabit. And sometimes that means inhabiting a story older than you…
Today is about saints – and saints show us that identity is sacred work. Today is about heritage – and heritage shows us that we walk in the footsteps of others. And today is about you.
Every time you eat a KitKat on St Kate’s Day, you participate in your own kind of communion. A remembering. A connection. A declaration that you are part of something larger than you know.
Happy St Kate’s Day.”
Finally, a St Kate’s Day poem written by Lucy (Y11) St Helen’s Laureate 2025-26
St Kate’s Day 2025 was the perfect reminder of what makes St Helen and St Katharine – and ‘HelKats’ – so special.
