Dear Parents and Carers
Culture Week has been a lovely celebration and has enabled our young people to engage in a range of different activities to broaden their cultural appreciation. Please see the article below for more details.
The exam season has really got going this week and hope those involved (Exam Team, young people, teachers and Year 11 and 6th Form teams) take time to relax a bit over the weekend and ensure they are fully refreshed for another full week next week.
Year 13 Leave us today for study leave and I wish them well for their revision over the next little while and for the adventures to come. Thank you to Mike Heffernan, Chris Wiggall, Jackie Todd, Vicky Pike, Caleb Rowe and the Year 13 Tutors and Teaching Team for their support of our wonderful young people during their time with us.
It is lovely to be able to share in the successes of our young people outside of school (see below). If you (and they!) are happy to share their achievements, please pass them on for us to include in our Headlines and share with the wider community.
A reminder that we finish for the Spring break Friday at 3pm.
Have a restful weekend.
Lisa Percy
Headteacher
News Items
🌍Celebrating Culture Week 2025: A Week of Diversity, Creativity and Community 🌍
This past week, our school community came together to celebrate Culture Week – a vibrant and meaningful week that shone a spotlight on the rich diversity within our school and around the world.
We began the week with a powerful visit from spoken word poet Muneera Pilgrim, who led inspiring workshops with our Year 7 students. Guided by her words and wisdom, students explored their own identities through poetry, creating verses that reflected their lives.
On Tuesday, our Year 10 GCSE students welcomed Christian guest speakers, who shared their experiences and reflections, encouraging thoughtful discussions on faith, belief and personal journeys.
Wednesday brought a moment of calm as Lamchen, a Buddhist nun, introduced students to meditation and mindfulness. These peaceful sessions gave students a chance to slow down, breathe deeply and reconnect with themselves – a much-appreciated pause in the busy school week.
Thursday continued the theme of mindful movement with a Tai Chi session led by Jean Harvest, allowing students to experience this ancient practice rooted in balance, control and inner peace.
Throughout the week, assemblies celebrated global cuisine and cultural traditions, while lunchtimes were filled with hands-on creativity. Students tried their hand at African mask designing, Greek worry bead making, stained glass colouring and crafting God’s Eyes, embracing the beauty of artistic expression from across the globe. In addition, several departments brought Culture Week into their classrooms by delivering one-off lessons within their subject areas – from exploring diversity in storytelling in English, to examining the global benefits of cultural diversification in Geography.
Our Appreciation Station became a growing wall of colour, as students filled it with butterfly notes expressing gratitude for aspects of their own cultures – a touching reminder of the diversity that enriches our school.
The canteen also joined in by serving samples of delicious Nankhatai, a type of Indian shortbread, while our Year 7s brought extra colour to the courts with their stunning Hindu rangoli patterns.
We’re incredibly proud of how our students embraced the spirit of Culture Week – with curiosity, respect and enthusiasm. A huge thank you to all the guests, staff and students who helped make this such a memorable and meaningful celebration!
Staying Safe in the Community PIAG:
On Thursday 8th May, Simon Goodwin and Simon Partington from Wiltshire Police’s Digital Investigation and Intelligence Unit visited Hardenhuish to deliver an important session on online safety and cyber security. Their presentation explored a range of issues that pose risks to both young people and the wider community.
Topics covered included social media, online exploitation, and the impact of digital footprints. Both speakers provided valuable insights and practical advice on how to protect young people and work alongside them to navigate the constantly evolving digital world safely. Key points from their presentation have been provided in the link below for your reference.
At Hardenhuish, we are committed to delivering robust education around online safety and cyber security to help keep our young people informed and protected. We hope this session was helpful for parents, carers, and members of our wider community in raising awareness of these important issues and encouraging meaningful conversations about online safety at home.
Sheep Club
Sheep Club have met most weeks, with our Hardenhuish shepherd, Chris, to learn about and care for our small herd of Jacob sheep. We have had fun and games getting them out of the trailer to where they should be. The pupils have learnt how to move and herd them between the two fields that we have, how to get them into the sheds and some of the pupils have successfully learnt how to turn the sheep onto their backs. Once in the sheds we are able to carry out our sheep maintenance tasks; these involve inspecting and trimming their hooves, tagging the lamb’s ears, weighing the lambs and even shearing the sheep. This is all work in progress as our lambs are growing fast. We also have a helper in Gilly the Sheepdog but recently she has not been needed as we are all getting so much better at herding!
D of E
Congratulations to all students who completed their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Assessment weekend. Despite the scorching temperatures and challenging terrain, participants demonstrated exceptional performance and resilience. It’s now time to finish the remaining parts of their sectional work and take up the Silver challenge in Year 10.
Well done to all the Bronze participants involved!
Mr Hawkins
The Great Hardenhuish Reading Challenge
Throughout the year, KS3 pupils have been taking part in the Great Hardenhuish Reading Challenge. This student-led initiative was the idea of Year 13 student Josh Bailey, who wanted to launch the competition to generate excitement around reading and inspire pupils to explore new genres.
The challenge involves students reading four books from different genres and giving a synopsis to a Year 12 Library Ambassador. It has been a great success with lots of pupils getting involved. This week 15 lucky pupils from years 7, 8, and 9 received prizes including a £5 WH Smith voucher and bookmark for completing the challenge.
Well done to all those who have got involved and a big thank you to Josh for organising the challenge.
Swimming Success
Year 8 pupil Isaac Wheadon recently represented his club at the Southwest Regional Championships, qualifying for 9 events. Isaac achieved his personal best in all events and finishing in the top ten in the Southwest for 8 out of his 9 events. Of those 8 events, 4 were in the top 5, placing 2nd in the 100m Freestyle. Well done Isaac.
Wiltshire Track and Field Championships
Year 9 pupil Caleb Lai recently competed in the long jump event at the Wiltshire County Track & Field Championships on 10th May 2025.
He jumped 5m and won a gold medal, achieving his personal best jump to date.
Huge congratulation to Caleb.
Karate
Year 8 pupil Molly McLean recently passed her Karate grading, achieving her brown belt. Congratulations Molly.
Vacancies – Hardenhuish School