As you are all aware, we had our OFSTED inspection on 21st March and I am delighted to share with you that we continue to be judged as a ‘Good’ school. We are all incredibly proud as since the last time the school was inspected in 2013 there have been many changes to the Ofsted Inspection Framework, which now has even higher expectations before a school is graded good or better.

The latest OFSTED Short Inspection Report, dated April 2017 can be viewed here.

The new short inspections for good schools are designed to focus on the quality of leadership and the capacity of leaders to drive improvement and safeguarding arrangements. Throughout short inspections, there is honest, challenging, professional dialogue between leaders and the Inspection team. Read more…

You are invited to find out more about life at Peter Symonds College at their Open Evenings. This is a great opportunity to take a look around their facilities, meet staff and current students, and discover more about the courses and activities available. More information available here.

Year 10 Open Evenings for 2018 entry are on:
12th and 13th July, 6-9pm
18th and 19th October, 6-9pm

The sums certainly add for Harrow Way’s able Year 7 and 8 Maths students who took park in the annual UK Junior Maths Challenge (UKMC), a national competition organised by the UK Mathematics Trust (UKMT). It’s another strong performance from the school with seven students awarded Silver certificates and 15 students Bronze certificates*. Year 8 student Daniel Bull achieved Best in Year and a Silver certificate and Charlie Holloway was awarded Best in Year 7, also winning a Silver certificate.

Commenting on the result Christina Marsh, Assistant Curriculum Leader for Mathematics said: “Maths is a particular strength here at Harrow Way with 73% of students achieving A*-C in last year’s GCSE exams. We always look for ways to stretch our students to push themselves and the Maths Challenge is a great way to engage them further and see how they can perform on a national platform. We want to maintain their passion for the subject and taking part in exercises such as the Maths Challenge is enjoyable as it is rewarding”. Read more…

Harrow Way’s House singing competition, The H-Factor, returned on Wednesday 21st June. Contestants are judged on their dynamic, intonation and tuning, as well as presentation and entertainment factor. Some images can be viewed here.

This years winners are:
1st – Faith Gove (Buzzards)
2nd – Jula Kinross (Buzzards)
3rd – Lani Clayton (Buzzards)

Year 8 students got the chance to visit Calshot Activity Centre for a week long residential last week. Students got to try activities on the land and water, many of which they would of never tried before, such as kayaking, wind surfing, shooting, archery, high ropes, track cycling on the velodrome and climbing. Some pictures can be viewed in our gallery here.

We have been advised by the Local Authority that the Met Office have issued a heatwave notice for the next few days.  To help your children cope in this unusual heat we have decided that blazers and ties need not be worn or brought into school up to and including Thursday 22nd June.   We will return to the usual uniform rules on Friday 23rd June, ties and blazers must then be worn.

​We would also strongly advise all students to have a water bottle; drinking water is freely available from fountains around the school.

Under 13 – Tuesday 13th June 2017
(Under 15 report below)

A promising team lead by County player Josh Banks-Williams headed to John Hanson with high hopes of improving on years past and aims of announcing Harrow Way as contenders in the District Cricket scene. Year 7 debutants Arshed, Holloway and Pardy all performed to a very high standard despite a lack of experience, with Pardy taking responsibility behind the wickets in a particularly mature display. Harrow Way finished 2nd (of 8) falling in the final against an older John Hanson side. Full reports below:

The opening match saw Harrow Way demonstrate formidable bowling in reducing Rookwood to 21 all out within the five over limit. Captain Banks-Williams with two wickets in the opening over and the impressive Faseeh Arshed picking up two in the following over highlighted our young side’s ability with the ball. With the bat Harrow Way were able to finish the game quickly Banks-Williams hitting 21 and Mcdermott playing counter bat with 4 chased down the Rookwood total within 2 overs. Read more…

In aid of local charities, a Community Family Fun Day is being held at Vigo Recreational Ground on Saturday 17th June, 12pm – 8pm. See poster for more details.

Harrow Way Community School Year 8 students were given a taste of Higher Education following a trip to The University of Winchester last week. The day of lecturers, tours and meeting undergraduates was designed to inspire the students to start considering their future and the role university could play in helping them achieve their ambitions.

Head of Year 8 Rachel Atherton commenting on the value of introducing the students to the idea of going to university, said: “Although university is a number of years away for these students it is important that they start to think about their future now. They all thoroughly enjoyed the visit and can now visualise what ‘being at university’ looks and feels like. We want students to aim high and achieve the best they can and the planning for that starts here, at Harrow Way. They have seen what could await them if they work hard and continue with their studies.” Read more…

Today we celebrated the last five years of our Year 11 Students and at a special celebration leavers assembly. The 180 members of year 11 as well as their tutors and other staff enjoyed eating Harrow Way branded cupcakes and saw images of their time at Harrow Way. They then made their way to the tennis courts to take part in the annual balloon release, celebrating the end of the time at the school. Images can be viewed here.

On Saturday 10th June, some Harrow Way students took part in the Hampshire Schools Athletics Championships, after being selected from the Andover District Competitions.

Special mention to the following students who performed very well on the day:
Adam Robinson – 2nd in Hampshire Junior Boys High Jump,​ 1.72m, which is the qualifying height for English Schools. This is equally impressive as he is competing against Year 9s! He is currently ranked 7th in the UK.

Mikey Summerfield – 2nd in Hampshire Junior Boys Shot Put at a distance of 10.85m.

Dan Fowler – 2nd in Hampshire Inter Boys High Jump at a high of 1.71m.