Uncategorized | Heritage

Y10 achieve their Bronze DofE Qualifying Expedition

Many congratulations to Y10 on completing their 2 day Bronze DofE Qualifying Expedition successfully. The group of 12 walked from Graffam Water towards Oundle, pitching camp for the night at Ferrar House in Little Gidding, a place of genuine significance in term of church history, and also literary history – as per TS Elliot’s 4th of the 4 Quartets, entitled ‘Little Gidding.’ Mr Fletcher and Mr Buchanan were supervising the group whilst Mr and Mrs Symons were assessing. After such a successful endeavour, we hope they will now set their sights on the Silver Award!

Year 11 Geographers in Hunstanton with Mrs Hulett

The Year 11 Geography class spent a very productive, fun-filled and rather wet two days in Hunstanton, as part of their coastal fieldwork for IGCSE Geography. They conducted three different studies during this time. The first was to investigate how beach characteristics change along a transect line, from cliff to sea. The students got to use a range of methods and equipment to capture and record their data. Their second study involved questioning locals and tourists about their opinions on the existing sea defences in Hunstanton. I was thrilled with the students enthusiasm and confidence in this task. We had a number of comments back from the public about how polite and lovely the children were. Finally, the third study was an eco-system one; examining sand dunes. This consisted of taking soil samples to work out the PH of the sand dune, as well as calculating infiltration rates, gradient etc. They also got to estimate the percentage of vegetation cover and to identify the different species colonising the dunes.

Some of the highlights of the trip (apart from the work of course) were swimming in the freezing sea; eating fish and chips in the sunshine after a grey, rainy day; and a lovely long walk along the promenade in the evening.

Now all the pupils need to do is present and analyse the data!

IGCSE Results 2017

Heritage School opened its doors on 5^th September 2007 to 16 pupils aged 4-7. On the eve of the school’s 10^th Anniversary, the second class of Year 11 leavers, a smaller class than usual, have received their exam results.

9 pupils sat IGCSEs and GCSEs this summer

All pupils achieved the grades they need to progress to their first choice of college or sixth form

7 out of 9 plan to attend Hills Road Sixth Form College; one pupil is progressing to further training in Art & Design and another to further training in Computer Programming

Nearly 50% of all grades were above what CAT (Cognitive Ability Test) results predicted ‘most likely’ – demonstrating Heritage School’s ability to add significant value

59% of all results were awarded A*

74% of all results were awarded A* or A

83% of all results were awarded A*, A or B

5 pupils achieved 8 or more A*s

2 pupils achieved 10 or more A*s, one of whom scored nearly perfect marks (99%) in Further Pure Maths

100% of pupils achieved 5 A* to C grades, including Maths, English Language and English Literature

Jason Fletcher the Headmaster at Heritage said:

“We are very proud of all of our pupils, and want to congratulate them, together with our dedicated staff, for their hard work. We have sought to create a learning culture that takes the long view, one that focusses upon robust intellectual and personal development for its own sake. A healthy school culture, that has its priorities in the right place, will enable pupils to thrive. Today’s results provide further evidence that Heritage is a place where pupils exceed expectation.”

Please see Information for Parents / Exams & Results to compare these results with last year’s results (2016).

‘I am now seriously considering whether to take part in Gold DofE having gone into the walk set against it!’

This year, we / Year 11 travelled to Shropshire to take part in a three-day Silver DofE expedition, carrying all of our equipment, food and clothing. We had to choose a goal which we would attempt to complete during the expedition; so we decided to learn more about the history of the local area, including visiting local towns and churches.

The walk didn’t start very well, with us arriving in pouring rain, which certainly dampened our spirits! However, once we got going the walk became much more enjoyable, and we were able to appreciate the fabulous scenery around us. We nearly got lost as we approached the Stipperstones Nature Reserve, but we were able to stay calm, and eventually got back on track. We spent our first night camping out in the garden of the Youth Hostel at Bridges, and we were able to enjoy our food which we cooked over our Trangia stoves.

The next day began with cooking coffee and porridge, before setting off about 9 o’clock. We walked at a good pace for the remainder of the day, and were able to arrive at Bishops Castle (about three kilometres from our campsite for that night) right on time. Here we spent some time finding more about the history of the town, visiting the local town hall, and reading leaflets from a variety of museums. After this break, we struggled through the rain up a steep hill to our campsite at Middle Woodbatch. We all greatly appreciated the quality of the showers at the campsite, and we were then able to enjoy an evening spent round the campfire together.

The next day began with full sun, and we set off with high spirits. We walked well until we reached the town of Clun, where we investigated the local castle and had lunch. After one last climb over Clun Hill we reached the village of Chapel Lawn, where we at last finished our walk!

Our whole class agreed that the Expedition was one of our most enjoyable times at Heritage, and we were all sad when it was over! In fact, the walk was so much fun that I am now seriously considering whether to take part in the Gold Award having gone into the walk set against it! Without doubt, it is challenging, but we were all able to push through, and I would sincerely recommend it to anyone considering Silver DofE. It provides a great chance to see more of our beautiful countryside, and also a wonderful opportunity to form deeper friendships with all of your classmates.

Jed Beynon, Y11, Head Boy

Dickens would have been delighted …

On Wednesday night, Year 8 performed Dickens’ much loved story ‘Little Dorrit’. In a creative adaptation of the complicated Victorian plot, Mr Stokes and his troupe of players (with considerable scripts to learn) presented the audience with a vivacious and enthusiastic telling of the tale. The twists and turns of the lives of a marvellous range of characters were portrayed well as they coped with the fate, fortune and failures of Victorian society.

Although Mr Stokes confessed to taking a few liberties with the plot and characters, the themes of the story were strongly portrayed – themes that still resonate in our contemporary world today. These include, money or the lack of it and the consequent snobbery or despair of poverty; the realities of loss and regret; selfishness and greed; and the enduring theme of hope in love and in friendship and in overcoming adversity. Mr Dickens would have been delighted to be there!