Dear Parents and Carers
Term 6 is always busy so this is a bit of a bumper Headlines!
Congratulations to our wonderful athletes who won the Area Athletics yesterday at Bath University and proudly brought home the trophy! Thank you to all those involved in supporting and training them for this event.
I have had the pleasure of opening the Chippenham Games on Tuesday and Wednesday this week and saying hello to our new Year 7 who are joining us in September. They had a wonderful time taking part in many activities organised by the wonderful Chippenham Sports Partnership and supported by our Sports Leaders who were amazing!
I hope that everyone enjoyed Successful Lives Day yesterday, the site was busy with activity and it was lovely to see young people and colleagues working together outside of their normal subjects and having fun. For Year 7 this was Myth Day, for Year 8 Cluedo Day, for Year 9 a Life Skills Day, for Year 10 a visit to Bath University combined with future planning activities and for Year 12 a visit to Cardiff University. Thank you to everyone involved for making the days such a success. I hope that Year 11 also had fun on their end-of-year trip to Thorpe Park.
We say goodbye to our visitors from Suzhou today. It has been a pleasure hosting them at Hardenhuish and we hope that they have learnt a lot from their experience. We held a celebration and farewell event yesterday which was also a lovely opportunity to thank our host families and buddies for helping to support the young people in school and outside of school time.
As you know we will be hosting a Hardenhuish50 Summer Open day on Saturday 11 July. Part of this will include a raffle and we would be very grateful of any prizes to include as part of this to support our HH50 fundraising. Please send these in to Reception.
Another opportunity to support our ongoing fundraising is to sign up to Easyfundraising. Please see the details below and if you sign up during Term 6, we will get a £3 bonus donation!
We have also signed up to the Wiltshire Lottery (see poster below) which will not only raise some funds for us but will raise funds for other local good causes and give you a chance to win up to £25,000!
A huge thank you to our Exams Team for all of their hard work and support for our young people during the exam season. Thanks also go to the Site Team who work so hard particularly at this time of the year to ensure that all of the rooms are set up with the right equipment.
A reminder that we have TD Day on Monday 22nd June, so no pupils are expected in school. I would also like to remind you that Friday 10th July is Year 7 and 12 Induction day and pupils are not expected to attend school unless they are supporting the Induction Days.
I am looking forward to the Summer Concert next week – fingers crossed for lovely weather! We are monitoring the weather carefully and will update you on Monday if the extreme hot weather materialises; please ask your young person to bring a refillable water bottle to school just in case.
Enjoy the longer weekend.
Lisa Percy
Headteacher
News Items
We’re calling on all parents and guardians this summer to help the Friends of Hardenhuish School – Chippenham fundraise. There’s a really simple way you can help without donating anything – simply get the easyfundraising app! It’s completely free and when you use it to do your normal day-to-day shopping with 8,000+ online retailers, we’ll receive a free cashback donation, AT NO EXTRA COST TO YOU. Even better, if you get the app and become our supporter this week, we get a £3 bonus donation just for inviting you. Use the link below and install the app on your mobile device, then fill in the simple steps to become our supporter for free. This will make a huge difference, thank you! Get the app here: https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/easyfundraising-app/?causeId=174657&utm_campaign=summer-parent-power&utm_source=pmc&utm_medium=email&utm_content=SPPemail1
Area Athletics
Congratulations to the Hardenhuish Athletics Team on their outstanding success in winning the Area Athletics Championships held on Wednesday at Bath University. Despite challenging weather conditions, with rain affecting events throughout the day, our athletes showed remarkable resilience, determination, and team spirit, refusing to let the conditions impact their performances. Their hard work and dedication in training were evident in the many excellent individual and team results achieved throughout the day. The day was capped off with the team receiving the championship trophy, a fantastic reward for their efforts. A huge thank you also goes to all the staff whose commitment, support, and preparation helped ensure the athletes were ready to perform at their very best.
Chippenham Games 2026
This week, 20 of our Year 10 Youth Sport Trust Leaders attended the Chippenham Games. Across the two-day event, they supported more than 400 Year 6 pupils by taking on the role of team managers and helping to run activity stations. They were fantastic ambassadors throughout, with their caring, responsible, and enthusiastic attitude helping to create a memorable and enjoyable experience for the younger pupils. They were all outstanding role models, and we are incredibly proud of them.
Supporting Wellbeing and Mental Health: Year 10 Samaritans Workshops
Over the past fortnight, our Year 10 students have taken part in Samaritans-led workshops during their PSHE lessons, focusing on emotional wellbeing and mental health. The sessions encouraged students to think about what emotional health means in everyday life. Students explored how wellbeing exists on a spectrum – from struggling to coping well – and recognised that most people move between these states regularly.
A key part of the workshops focused on understanding the factors that influence mental health. The sessions emphasised how to recognise when someone might be struggling. Signs such as changes in mood, low energy, and difficulty concentrating were explored, helping students to become more aware of both their own wellbeing and that of others.
Students also considered practical strategies to support their mental health, including spending time with friends, engaging in hobbies, and taking time to relax. A central message throughout was the importance of talking. The workshops demonstrated how speaking to someone can help people process their feelings, reduce stress and build resilience.
The Samaritans reinforced that support is always available, and no one has to deal with difficult feelings alone. These workshops have provided Year 10 students with valuable tools and understanding to support their wellbeing, helping to foster a more open and supportive conversation around mental health.
Year 9 Successful Lives Day
The Year 9s were practicing transferable skills as part of their ‘Life Skills’ Successful Lives day on Thursday, which included a carousel of collaborative and problem solving activities – from solving puzzles to working as a team to transfer water across the courts using pipes. In one activity our students worked efficiently on planning, designing, and producing ‘thank you’ cards whilst developing their productivity and business skills. Through teamwork, creativity, and careful budgeting, they learnt how to make more with less and how thoughtful design can lead to professional results. This session helped them understand the value of efficiency and careful spending, preparing them for real-world challenges in both creative and entrepreneurial settings. The Year 9s approached all activities with enthusiasm and positivity and the results were impressive!
Junior Kangaroo Maths Challenge
Congratulations to 2 of our key stage 3 mathematicians who have both achieved Gold certificates in the Junior Kangaroo Maths Challenge. The Junior Kangaroo is the second round of the Junior Maths Challenge and a Gold Certificate is the highest award so both pupils have shown exceptional problem-solving skills. This award puts them both in the top 1% of over 300,000 pupils who completed the first round.
Well done to both pupils, we are incredibly proud of this achievement and excited to see what they go on to accomplish in future Maths Challenges!
School Calendar – Hardenhuish School