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What a wonderful year it has been. There have been so many successes, both great and small, and moments where the lightbulb had pinged on as students have got that key understanding. We have seen our students grow in front of our eyes, managing feats they didn’t think they were capable of, and managing to achieve academic progress across their subjects that sets them up brilliantly for the next steps, whether that is the next year at Hazelwick, external exams next year or moving on to university, apprenticeships or employment.

One of the greatest pleasures, and challenges, of working in a school is that no job is ever completed or finished. There are always more students, more aspirations, more targets. That is very true at Hazelwick. We will look forward to returning after the summer break to welcome our students back to school, to make clear our expectations and to support them to become the best version of themselves that they can be. However, before that, it has been a very busy term so I wish my colleagues, our students and all of you in the Hazelwick community a happy and restful summer. See you in September.

Mr D Leadbitter

Headteacher

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On the 15th of July,2026, the inaugural Pokémon Champions battle tournament was hosted by Mr. Luis, Mr. Cathcart and Mr. Elliot. With the release of Pokémon Champions on mobile, this game was accessible to everyone to participate.

18 students signed up to take part in this tournament, and they were joined in battle by their friends to cheer them on. Students began by preparing their teams to battle each other in a test of skill, prediction and tactical nous. The students were highly engaged in the battles, taking notes on their future opponents' teams and showing a great deal of foresight and planning.

Throughout the tournament, students experienced a range of emotions comparable to that felt by the England World Cup squad. There was sorrow as students lost and were knocked out. There was immense happiness as they won and progressed. After two gruelling semi-final battles, our finalists emerged: Jack Yeomans (10TFR) and Ayaan Shah (9CST).

The final was an epic battle between two strategic brains. After a tough back and forth, we reached the end of this epic encounter with just one Pokémon standing on each side, proving to be a nail-biting finish.  The Pokémon used their last moves, and Ayaan Shah (9CST) came out victorious.

This event was highly successful with various chants for Pokémon and various strategies used by our students. We look forward to hosting this Pokémon Tournament in the next academic year on a bigger scale! Students are welcome to join us at Pokémon Club, held on Wednesdays after school in 105.

We chose you!

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A gold medal for Bee Walker for coming 1st in 100m, 1st in 1500 and 2nd in high jump. A silver Medal for Amelia Stanescu for coming 1st in long jump and 3rd the in 800m. A silver medal for Mimi Ball for coming 2nd in long jump and 3rd in the 1500m. A bronze Medal for Tanisha Bhimjiani for coming 3rd in the 200m and 1st in speed bounce.

A gold medal for Ibrahim Mansoor for a 3rd in the 200m and a 1st in discus. A silver medal for Luca Cot for 2nd in the 800m and 2nd in the high jump. A bronze Medal for Sam Tripp for a 3rd in 1500m and 4th in the 800m.

Girls form winners:  7HKE

Boys form winners: 7TBR

Overall winning form is 7HKE with 133 points.

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A gold medal for Niamh Pedlow for a 1st in 100m and a 1st in javelin. A silver medal for Kasey Uka for coming 2nd in the 800m and a 1st high jump. A bronze medal for Faridah Amelogbe for coming 2nd in 1500m and 3rd 100m. A bronze medal for Caitlin Muggeridge 2nd long jump and 3rd in the 800m.

A gold Medal for Nehan Mohammed for coming 1st in the 1500m and 1st in long jump. A silver for Shayaan Rasool for coming 2nd in the 1500m and 2nd in 800m. A bronze medal for Sathvik Dhulipala for coming 2nd in speed bounce and 3rd in the 1500m.

Girls form Winners: 8GBE

Boys Form Winners: 8TLA

Overall Winning form: 8TLA with 162 points

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A gold medal for Jade Frankham for coming 1st in 300m and 1st in long jump. A silver medal for Farah El Emam for coming 1st in 1500m, 2nd in the 200m and 2nd in speed bounce. A bronze medal for Belle Mclaren for coming 1st in the 100m and 2nd in the high jump. A bronze medal for Belle Imhoff for coming 1st in speed bounce and 2nd in the 800m. A bronze medal for Kaiiyan O’Brien Mejias for coming 2nd in the 100m and 1st in high jump.

A gold medal for Timur Janusaitis-Yatsyna for coming 1st in the 200m and 1 st in speed bounce. A gold medal for Akmal Riyaz Ahamed for coming 2nd in 30m and 1st in long jump. A silver Medal for Abid Mouali for coming 1st in Shotput and 3rd in the 300m. A silver Medal for Adam Baccar for coming 1st in the 1500m and 3rd in the speed bounce A silver medal for Byron Bromley for coming 1st in Discus and 3rd in the 1500m.  A bronze for Jude O’Neill for coming 2nd in 1500m and 3rd in the 300m.

Girls form Winners: 9NWI

Boys form Winners: 9AWE

Overall winning form: 9DLI with 145 points.

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A gold medal for Holly Earl for coming 1st in long jump and 1st in 100m. A gold Medal for Vongai Musanhi for coming 1st in the Triple jump and 1st in the 300m. A silver Medal for Anabel Miorali Linan for coming 2nd in High jump and 2nd in the 1500m. A silver medal for Sofia Finlayson-Green for coming 2nd in the triple jump and 2nd in the 200m. A bronze Medal for Holly Hughes for coming 2nd in the long jump and 3rd in the 300m. A bronze medal for Harleen Saraw for coming 2nd in the 800m and 3rd in the javelin.

A gold Medal for Alfie Biggle for coming 1st in the 200m, 1st in the Discus and 2nd in the 1500m. A silver medal for Golden Okeke for coming 1st in long jump and 2nd in the 300m. A silver medal for Lewis Shaw Oyefesobi for coming 2nd in the long jump and 3rd in the 800m. A bronze for Lucas Connell for coming 1st in the 1500m and 3rd in the Shotput.

Girls form winners – 10UHA

Boys form winners – 10JHR

Overall winning form 10UHA with 149 points.

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Niamh Pedlow, Ella King, Harmani Sandhu, Kasey Uka, Ava Waters, Holly Phillips, Kara Murray, Galiene Sebide, Tanisha Bhimjiani.

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A huge congratulations to our U13 Girls Rounders team on an outstanding achievement in winning the District League!

On Wednesday 15th, the girls played their final league match against ICC, knowing that a win would secure the league title. They produced an exceptional all-round team performance to win convincingly 31.5–3.5.

Niamh and Tanisha bowled superbly throughout the match, while Harmani was outstanding as backstop, helping to keep the pressure on the opposition. Ella and Ava impressed with some fantastic batting, and Galiene and Holly made several excellent catches in the field. Kara and Kasey also played a vital role with their excellent work on second and fourth base, helping the team maintain control throughout the game.

The girls have shown incredible teamwork and determination throughout all the fixtures, winning all six of their league matches by more than five points. They should be extremely proud of their achievements.

Well done to the entire team on a well-deserved District League title!

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Y7 Design & Technology- Mood Light Project

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Y7 Design & Technology- Mood Light Project

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Year 7 have shown brilliant progress throughout their first year in Design & Technology. Students have grown in confidence in being in a workshop environment, working independently and using workshop tools and machinery, elements of which were new to many of them.

This project enabled our Year 7’s to consider designing for a specific client and selecting ideas that would meet a given specification. As part of the project, students learnt about basic electronic components that were used to make up the usb-c LED light board, learnt to interpret working drawings, focussed on measuring and marking out accuracy, demonstrated an understanding of material properties with manufactured boards and acrylic and had to ensure components fitted together accurately and securely during the manufacturing process. They also had their initial experience in using design-based computer software with great success.

Students chose their own imagery to individualise their products and it’s great to see them enjoying such lovely outcomes.

Excellent work Year 7, well done. We look forward to continuing your D&T journey next year!

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Alice shines at the English Schools Athletics Championships

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Alice shines at the English Schools Athletics Championships

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Alice in Year 13, has recently secured a bronze medal in the steeplechase at the English Schools Athletics Championships. This is such a great reward for all her hard work and persistence over the years. Alice has been a stalwart of the school athletics team and will be sorely missed. Well done, Alice, we are very proud of your achievements and look forward to hearing about your progress in the future.

Mrs Reynolds

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Careers Fair Inspires Students to Explore Future Pathways

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Careers Fair Inspires Students to Explore Future Pathways

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Our recent Careers Fair was a fantastic success and an important part of the school's careers education programme, giving students the opportunity to meet employers, training providers, colleges, and universities from a wide range of sectors.

Nearly 30 organisations attended the event, representing industries including engineering, healthcare, aviation, sport, law, construction, transport, education, the armed forces, emergency services, and technology. Exhibitors included local and national organisations such as Rolls-Royce Solutions UK, Thales, Roche Diagnostics, Sussex Police, South East Coast Ambulance Service, West Sussex County Council Children's Services, Chailey Heritage Foundation, Gatwick STEM, the Royal Air Force, the British Army, alongside a range of universities, colleges and apprenticeship providers.

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Spanish Spelling & Translation Bee National Finals – University of Cambridge

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Spanish Spelling & Translation Bee National Finals – University of Cambridge

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Hazelwick is delighted to celebrate an extraordinary end to another successful academic year with outstanding achievements in the Routes into Languages National Spanish Spelling Bee and Translation Bee competitions, held at the University of Cambridge on 23 and 24 June.

In only our second year entering the Spanish Spelling Bee, Hazelwick achieved exceptional national success. Shanmukh Dhulipala (7PWE) was crowned National Champion, Subi Baskar (7PWE) finished 2nd nationally, and Rob Fecko (7PWE) secured an outstanding 5th place. Equally impressive was our first participation in the Spanish Translation Bee, where Nayonika Sujitkumar (8GPR) achieved an outstanding 2nd place nationally.

The standard of both competitions was exceptionally high. More than 15,592 students began the Spelling Bee and 14,631 entered the Translation Bee, representing state, independent and selective schools from across the country. Reaching the National Finals is an achievement in itself, making our students' performances truly exceptional.

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Careers Fair Inspires Students to Explore Future Pathways [Continued]

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Careers Fair Inspires Students to Explore Future Pathways [Continued]

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Students valued the chance to have meaningful conversations with professionals, explore different career routes, and gain a better understanding of the qualifications and skills needed for future success. Many commented on how useful it was to hear first-hand experiences and learn about opportunities they had not previously considered.

Feedback from exhibitors was equally positive, with stallholders praising students for their enthusiasm, thoughtful questions, and excellent engagement throughout the event. Several organisations commented on the maturity and professionalism shown by students and expressed their appreciation for the warm welcome they received.

The Careers Fair forms a key part of our commitment to helping students make informed decisions about their future education, training, and employment pathways. We would like to thank all the organisations that supported the event and helped inspire the next generation as they consider their future career aspirations.

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U15s Crowned County Cup Shield Champions

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U15s Crowned County Cup Shield Champions

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Hazelwick School’s Under-15 boys’ football team produced a memorable performance on Wednesday evening to lift the County Cup Shield, completing a remarkable cup run with a deserved 3-1 victory over Heathfield Community College in the final.

Having already overcome Oriel, Seaford Head, TBCC and Oathall Community College in the earlier rounds, Hazelwick saved one of their finest displays for the biggest occasion. The final was played at the Sussex FA headquarters in a fully enclosed stadium, providing a fitting stage for an outstanding achievement.

Preparations for the showpiece event were not without challenges. Several players were unavailable for selection after failing to meet the school’s behaviour criteria, resulting in two Year 9 students stepping up to support the squad. Both performed superbly, exemplifying the commitment and team spirit that characterised Hazelwick’s campaign.

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U15s Crowned County Cup Shield Champions [Continued]

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U15s Crowned County Cup Shield Champions [Continued]

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The annual Town sports athletics competition took place on Tuesday 7th July at K2 athletics track. This is the final event in our calendar and all of the Crawley schools work hard with their athletes to win. Hazelwick students showed great determination and spirit throughout the very hot day winning points in a number of events. Stand out performances came from; Ella King (Shot Putt), Niamh Pedlow (100m/Jav), Yasmin El Enam and Farah El Enam (1500m), Belle Imhoff (800m) and Hans Henriette (100m).

The final points tally for the different age groups can be seen in the table attached with the final result being second place overall. This is a fantastic achievement by all of those involved and hopefully next year we can go one step further and win.

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With Results Days just around the corner, many students will be thinking about their next steps. From Sixth Form and college to apprenticeships, T Levels and employment with training, there are a range of exciting opportunities available, with plenty of advice and support on hand to help you navigate your options.

Useful sources of support include:

National Careers Service – free, impartial advice and dedicated results day support for students and parents/ carers Get help with your exam results | National Careers Service

UCAS – advice on Clearing and progression options

Sixth Form and College admissions teams – support with enrolment and alternative courses

Good luck to all students receiving results this summer! 🎉📚

Interested in Apprenticeships?

A brand-new Rapid Read resources has been created by Amazing Apprenticeships ahead of Results Day to support students interested in apprenticeships. Rapid Read: Finding Apprenticeship Vacancies - Amazing Apprenticeships

Apprenticeships are advertised throughout the year across a range of websites and platforms. This helpful 4-page guide explains the many ways to search for apprenticeship opportunities, including dedicated vacancy websites, employer careers pages, social media, and personal networks.

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Spanish Spelling & Translation Bee National Finals – University of Cambridge [Continued]

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Spanish Spelling & Translation Bee National Finals – University of Cambridge [Continued]

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Spanish Spelling Translation Bee Finals 2026

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For my final article of this academic year, I have chosen the theme of e-Library collections, to keep students reading over the holidays. I have also included an update regarding the winners of the Carnegie Medals.

e-Library collections

e-Library collections can keep everyone reading over the summer holidays. Readers can access them from any electronic device which makes them portable and ideal for long journeys. They also provide a wide range of titles and genres. I thought I would share the two different free e-Library collections that students can access over the holidays.

School Library e-Platform

All students have access to the School Library e-Platform where they can select titles from the eBook and eAudio book collections. Both collections provide a wide range of both Fiction and Non-Fiction titles and different genres. eBooks also enable the reader to tailor their reading with a range of functions including changing background colours, nighttime reading mode, and changing word/line spacing. There is also a notes and highlights function which may be of particular interest to students who are reading key texts for their studies. If you love to know what everyone else is reading/listening to, the ePlatform also displays the popular eBook titles and most listened to eAudio books. Recently added and newly published titles are also featured which makes for ease of browsing. The loan period for both formats is two weeks and students will be emailed with a renewal reminder. Titles that are on loan can also be reserved. Students can access the ePlatform by using the link below:

https://hazelwick.eplatform.co/

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Our Year 8 students took part in our annual French trip to Paris in June, where they had the opportunity to practise their French and discover the history and culture of the city. As well as seeing the Mona Lisa at the Louvre, we picnicked in the Tuileries gardens and explored the Montmartre area.  We also enjoyed a visit to the Cheese Museum where we learnt about the process and sampled some of the produce, before taking a boat trip along the Seine, where we admired many of the famous sights, such as Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower. Students also had the opportunity to try French cuisine at local restaurants and enjoy the rides and shows at the Parc Astérix theme park. Here are some highlights of the trip, chosen by the Year 8 students:

Going to Paris was an amazing opportunity and I had lots of fun there. It was exciting to see so many famous monuments such as the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower.

Logan Somasundram 8TEL

My favourite part was visiting Parc Astérix and going on the rides, as well as seeing the show. I also liked the cheese tasting visit. It gave me a clear history of how cheese was made.

Iaroslav Sinkevich 8BLU

I made lots of memories and made new friends.

Anaiya Valambhia 8GBE

It was exciting to see the Eiffel Tower and the Mona Lisa. The best part was of course Mr Chalmers singing Champs Elysées! It was a great trip!

Ella Oladimeji 8GBE

It was a great opportunity to learn about the history of France and have fun with friends. I will never forget this trip!

Anjana Theepan 8GPR

The Paris Trip was an amazing opportunity to hear and speak French in day-to-day France.

Naomi Brown 8SSM

I really enjoyed the boat tour as we got to see lots of monuments at sunset, which made great photos!

Amelie Johnson 8RPA

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What a 2026 we’ve had in the House System! In the first half term we created our new House crests to represent the new House namesakes, then we had to Find Ms Pearson all over school. Years 9 and 10 then competed in the Chase against Mr Chalmers while all year groups had the opportunity to camouflage themselves in a photograph before our sixth formers competed in a very competitive Benchball tournament.

In October our older students participated in a World Quiz Challenge and Year 11 pitted themselves against the clock in a Chopstick Challenge. Mx Nolan organised a brilliant Black Out Poetry competition for Years 7,8 and 9 while Year 10 tried their best in a Blindfold Penalty Shootout just before the Winter break.

As we started 2026 our Year 8’s and 9’s designed planets while Mrs Millard had the difficult job of judging the amazing Winter Photography Competition. Mr Suckling organised an incredible Chess Competition which spanned over a month of matches. Our Year 7’s tested themselves with a Balancing Competition and the Sixth Formers were put through their paces with a University Challenge quiz and made excellent use of the buzzers!

Mrs Stapleton created a Caption Competition for all our students to write their wittiest comments while Ms Pearson celebrated World Book Day with a design a bookmark competition. Year 8 and 9 battled it out in a Speediest Quiz and our Year 10s and 11s were helped in the Paper Aeroplane Competition by Mr de Moor’s expertise.

After the Easter holidays students had the opportunity to complete an Astronomy Scavenger Hunt and Years 7 and 8 had the chance to showcase their Origami creativity while all our students also tested their musical knowledge with the Big Music Quiz. We celebrated our student’s baking skills with the delicious annual House Bake Off where Mr Leadbitter and other members of our SLT had the pleasure of taste-testing the bakes. To round off the half term all students had the chance to design a film poster while our older students also had the chance to compete in physical challenges in The Cube.

In this final half term we have celebrated Pride Month with a Pride Month Quiz for all students and Years 8 and 9 competed in a very tense Basketball free throw in South playground. I got the pleasure of being part of the judging panel for our fantastic Hairdressing Competition and also got to watch our Year 7s and 8s work their facial muscles in the Biscuit Balancing Competition.

After tallying the results from all these competitions and combining them with all the achievement points earnt throughout the year I’m very pleased to announce that the winning House for 2025-26 is Mr Suckling and Sancho House! They will celebrate with a free House BBQ on 17th July to revel in all the achievements of our Sancho students! Congratulations!

It’s been a pleasure to see so many students participating in our events this year and we look forward to welcoming you all to lots more events next year! A huge thank you to our Heads of Houses who have made all the events possible this year. We are saying goodbye in the House team to Mr de Moor and Ms Pearson and thank them for their leadership and commitment. We also welcome Ms Obot and Mr Laidlaw into these roles from September.

See you next year for more House competitions!

Mrs Podsiadly

Senior Head of House

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Y8 Design & Technology- Design Movement Clocks

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Y8 Design & Technology- Design Movement Clocks

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Year 8 students have been busy exploring the vibrant and playful world of Memphis design, creating their own eye-catching, Memphis-inspired clocks. Drawing on the movement’s signature use of bold colours, geometric shapes and unconventional patterns, students have shown real creativity and individuality in their work.

As part of the project, students developed practical making skills, learning how to safely cut and shape acrylic to form the main structure of their clocks. They also embraced digital design techniques, using computer aided software and circular arrays to create and produce their own vinyl-cut numbers, adding a personalised and professional finish to each piece.

The result is a striking collection of colourful and imaginative clocks, each reflecting the unique style of our young designers. This project has not only strengthened students’ design and making skills but also encouraged experimentation, precision and confidence in using new tools and materials.

Well done, Year 8, for a fantastic set of outcomes!

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A small number of our Year 8 students opted in to a challenge to create new designs for a well-known brand of footwear. Some lovely examples of their ideas and creativity.

Their theme was to create futuristic designs that would still be suitable for wear and they were given a short time limit to complete this challenge and present their ideas.

Well done to those involved.

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Y9 Design & Technology- Designer inspired jewellery

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Y9 Design & Technology- Designer inspired jewellery

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For their final project in Year 9, students have been working on creating individual pieces of wearable jewellery, looking at the work of Tatty Devine, Sour Cherry and Fred Butler.

As part of their Design & Technology course, students investigate a range of designers from the GCSE specification to develop their observational skills. Students carried out independent research, producing a range of hand-drawn design ideas inspired by their chosen designer. They transferred these ideas to Techsoft Design to be manufactured on the laser cutter and/or by using relevant hand tools and finishing techniques.

Students have learnt about a range of polymers that are available to them for use in their practical products moving forwards as well as independent manufacture on computer aided machinery. These skills are essential for their own development and they’ve shown a brilliant ability with their creativity throughout.

Great work Year 9, well done!

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Thirteen Year 12 students recently attempted the highly demanding Cambridge Chemistry Challenge. The Cambridge Chemistry Challenge is a national chemistry competition run by St Catherine’s College Cambridge. It challenges the most able Year 12 chemistry students to solve unfamiliar problems using their Year 12 chemistry knowledge and understand and apply chemistry that they encounter for the first time when they attempt the challenge. This year seven students scored highly enough to achieve an award and were presented with their certificates during assembly. Achieving an award in the Chemistry Challenge is a notable achievement and is highly regarded by universities.

Students pictured (left to right) are: Aidan, Kunaal, Wasif, Zara, Vinoj, Amelia, and Ella.

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The Year 9 Sociologists have completed an end of year project summarising sociology so far! Students were set work to 'create anything' linked to sociology. Students have made a range of projects including posters, poems, written interviews, film reviews, wall art, poems and even raps! They have demonstrated incredibly knowledge and creativity.

Well done Year 9!

Mrs Stapleton

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Our Summer Holiday Club is running throughout the school holidays, offering a wide range of fun, active and engaging sessions for children. Activities include sports, team games, gymnastics, climbing, themed activity days, trips and much more.

📍Location: Chichester College Sports Centre
📅Dates: 23 July - 28 August 2026
⏰Time: 9:00-16:00 Daily

We are also pleased to be offering HAF-funded spaces for eligible children during the summer holidays. These spaces are available on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays during Weeks 2–5 of the holiday programme. HAF places are limited and must be booked through the council booking system.

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Thursday 13th August

A-level Results Day

Thursday 20th August

GCSE Results Day

Wednesday 2nd September

Year 12 Enrolment, 8.30am

Thursday 3rd September

Year 7 First day

Friday 4th September

Start of term - Week 1

Wednesday 9th September

Year 11 Parents’/Carers’ Information Evening

Tuesday 15th September

Year 7 Introductory Meeting for Parents/Carers

Thursday 17th September

Primary School Open Evening - school closed from 12.20pm

Thursday 24th September

Year 12 Parents’/Carers’ Information Evening