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Last week, I had the absolute pleasure of joining our Year 9 and 10 students on the Paris trip – and what a brilliant few days we had! From scaling the dizzy heights of the Eiffel Tower to tackling the steep steps of the Sacré-Cœur and a very long stroll up the Champs-Élysées, our students showed endless enthusiasm and energy. They were an absolute joy to be with – curious, good-humoured, and keen to soak up every bit of French culture. Highlights included exploring the city's most iconic landmarks and, for some brave souls, sampling escargots – yes, snails! It was a fantastic trip, full of laughter, learning, and memories we’ll treasure for a long time.

A very warm welcome to our New Intake 2025 families who receive our newsletter for the first time this week! We are delighted to welcome you to the Harrow Way community and to your first edition of our weekly eNews. Over the next five years, we look forward to working in close partnership with you to ensure the very best experience for your child.

 

Our eNews is sent out every Friday and includes a round-up of what’s happened during the week, as well as reminders and details of upcoming events. In the coming weeks, you’ll find updates specifically for our rising Year 7 students, so do keep an eye out each week.

One of the first things to look out for is our Welcome Pack, which has been posted to your home address this week. The pack includes our school handbook and other key information to help you and your child prepare for September. We will use the address provided to us by the local authority or any updated address you’ve submitted. If you don’t receive your pack by Thursday 20th June, please give us a call on 01264 364533 to check we have the correct details.

Last night, our annual Harrow Way’s Got Talent event was a true celebration of the incredible talents within our student body. From powerful monologues and emotive poetry readings, to dance routines, a magic act, a drama vignette and a number of musical performances, it was a joy to witness our students’ courage and creativity as they took to the stage.

 

Congratulations to all who took part – you made the evening unforgettable. The Audience’s Choice award went to Jessica Phillips for her outstanding musical performance, while the Judges’ Winner was Hollie Spear who captivated us all with her extraordinary ballet skills. A special thank you to Mr Manson, our brilliant Head of Performing Arts, whose organisation, support and expert compering brought the whole event together.

Finally, looking ahead, I’m pleased to share that Harrow Way has been approached by Hampshire County Council to explore the development of an Autism Resourced Provision, with a proposed opening date of September 2026. If the project progresses, there will be a formal consultation later this term. We believe this provision could greatly enhance the support we offer to some of our most vulnerable students, and we look forward to working closely with the Local Authority as the project takes shape. All parents and carers will be invited to hear more about the plans, ask questions, and share their views.

I wish you all an enjoyable weekend,
Mrs Dawn German

All key dates for 2024-25 are also available on the website.

Assemblies This Week
Assemblies this week focused on the incredible work of our emergency services.  Students Ryley Dixon (Year 9) and Seren Boswell (Year 8) talked about the brilliant work done by all of the emergency services but particularly by the police, firefighters and paramedics. Helping the public when they are at their most vulnerable.  They also discussed why this topic is of such importance to them personally, and outlined some of the career opportunities in this area. Their thoughtful reflections, confident delivery, and the pride with which they represented the school earned them a well-deserved Headteacher’s Commendation.
Mrs Blair

 

Zanzibar 2027
Jambo! On Wednesday 11th June we hosted African Adventures, who came in to give a parents' information evening on the Zanzibar 2027 trip. You can read the presentation here. We were delighted to hear from some of the students who went on the Zanzibar 2024 trip about how transformative and rewarding it had been for them to volunteer. This trip is not a holiday, it is an incredible opportunity to make a difference to people who really need and appreciate our help.

 

We will be revisiting Kinuni school in Zanzibar in July 2027 and will be volunteering in construction, teaching and sports coaching. The week of volunteering will be followed by a bit of tourism with the very special "Taste of Zanzibar" weekend. The trip is open to students currently in Year 7 and Year 8. 

Those who would like to apply should email Mr Bulpitt or Ms Blair with a sentence or two on why they would like to be part of this incredible experience. Deadline for applications is 18th June.

Green Week Brings Knights Enham and Harrow Way Together for a Sustainable Future
On Monday, a group of our students worked with students from Knights Enham Junior School and The Andover Trees United Team at Diamond Woods (also known as Harmony Woods) as part of this year’s Great Big Green Week. The event saw mixed groups of students from both schools engage with activities to take positive action for the environment. After a litter pick the students tackled the question of making schools more sustainable with each group presenting their ideas to both peers and adults. 

Thank you to all involved in this fabulous day!

Please follow this LINK to read the full article!

Relaxed Uniform Day in Aid of “Simon Says”

27th June 2025
As you may be aware, we have become a Simon Says champions school.  “Simon Says” is a charity that supports young people in the local area to cope with bereavement.  As part of our work as a champion school, we make a commitment to raise money to support the charity. On Friday 27th June, we will have a relaxed uniform day where students can wear trainers, a hoodie and no tie. If your child wants to participate in this please send them to school with £1 on the day.  

Peripatetic Music Lessons at Harrow Way
Strings, Brass, Woodwind, Piano, Drums. Guitar and Voice.

There are spaces coming up if your child(ren) would like to learn to play an instrument or have vocal lessons, each week during the school day. Please go to our website for further information on instrumental lessons and complete the Expression of Interest Form via the link on the Music page or send an email to: heather.munroe@harrowway.hants.sch.uk

The fees are subsidised by the school, and the costs are currently being reviewed.  Please contact us as soon as possible, if your child would like to make the most of this opportunity. 

Year 11 Notices

Request for Pre-Loved Year 11 Uniform
As your child is ending their Harrow Way journey, the PTFA would like to wish them the best of luck in everything they do. We would like to thank you, the parents, for your support towards the PTFA over the last few years.

We are kindly requesting, if it is possible, that you consider donating pre-loved uniform and PE kit to the thrift shop. We have found the thrift shop to be increasingly popular and our supplies are low. Ideally we would like: blazers, skirts, ties and PE kits.

To donate, simply drop in uniform at reception (don’t worry about washing or missing buttons etc. we will take care of that). Alternatively, your child can drop the uniform directly into Mrs Bain’s room B004. The PTFA are also planning to have ‘drop-zones’ after the students’ last exams.

Thank you for your support with this. HWPTFA

Year 11 Student Contact Information
We kindly ask that parents and carers of our current Year 11 students ensure their address and contact details are up to date. This will allow us to keep you and your child informed about arrangements for Results Day and, later in the year, our KS4 Presentation Evening.
We also request that students provide a personal (non-school) email address so we can stay in touch with them. By supplying this email, we will assume that you consent to us storing and using it to contact your child in the future. Please complete the form below to provide this information:

Year 11 Student Contact Details 2025

We would appreciate it if you could update any relevant details by Friday 20th June 2025.

Year 11 - Important Prom Evening Travel Information
We are very much looking forward to welcoming our Year 11 students to the upcoming Prom Evening — a special occasion to celebrate the end of the academic year.

Please be aware that Portway School will also be hosting its Summer Fête on the same evening, which is likely to attract a high number of visitors. As a result, traffic along Upper Drove is expected to be particularly heavy.

To help ensure a smooth and enjoyable arrival for all prom attendees, we kindly ask that transport to the prom avoids Upper Drove where possible. We encourage you to consider alternative routes or drop-off points to help ease congestion in the area.

Thank you for your understanding and support in helping the evening run safely and smoothly.

Ways Forward - our weekly newsletter for Careers, Apprenticeship, College, Work and Work Experience.

This week in Ways Forward you can find out how to become an ethical hacker, learn more about AI with some free IBM courses, and attend an in-person event at AWE to find out about their apprenticeship opportunities in STEM, engineering and technology.

Those interested in university might like to attend a webinar from the University of Oxford, and if considering becoming a doctor, there are some amazing virtual work experience opportunities that you could explore. Our Labour Market Information spotlight focuses on a new Green Careers Hub website. For Year 11 who've applied to BCoT, please see the information about their welcome event coming up soon.

New apprenticeship vacancies available for Year 11 include a business administrator, property maintenance operative, and a mechanic apprentice with Jaguar Land Rover.

Foreign language titles are available on the online platform SORA - French, German, Ukrainian, Spanish, Cantonese and more.

In July, we will be publishing our events calendar on the school website. There are lots of awareness and recognition days worth marking and some new ones will be reflected too. Do encourage your son/daughter to join in - these events support various topics across many curriculum areas and support well-being and personal development. For 2025, our objective continues to be Representation including work on Protected Characteristics.

Primary Cricket Festival
On Tuesday 3 Primary Schools came to Harrow Way for a Cricket festival. Some of the children had very little experience playing cricket, however, they were very excited to learn. We started the morning off with the children completing a round robin of activities. Tom and Taylyn taught them how to bat successfully with the children hitting some fantastic shots. Ethan then taught them how to bowl, they were really enjoying overarm bowling, demonstrating brilliant technique. Holly and Lexi did some catching games with them and Tomasz and Hayden took them through some relay races focussing on their coordination skills. We finished the morning with some cricket matches where the children demonstrated everything they had learnt. We all had a fantastic morning and the Primary children were buzzing when they left. A massive thank you to my Sports Leaders for taking them through the activities. We are looking forward to Rounders on 24th June with Reception children.

Year 8 Rounders Tournament
On Tuesday Harrow Way hosted the third of the District rounders tournaments, this time for Year 8. With 6 schools taking part, the teams were split into 2 pools, with each school vying to come 1st to secure their place in the final.

Our first game was against Testbourne. Both teams were clearly nervous, giving a number of half rounders away , but with Testbourne leading narrowly 7 - 5 ½ at the midway point, it was still anyone’s game. Unfortunately the girls couldn’t quite close the gap with the game finishing 11-9 to Testbourne. Best Batter: Ruby, Best Fielder: Minnie.

The second game against Winton was much more comfortable. Some improved batting by the team and excellent running between the posts by Ruby in particular gave the team a much healthier score and great 2nd deep - 2nd base teamwork between Lexi and Ivy resulted in a 14- 7 ½ victory. Best Batter: Skyla, Best Fielder: Ivy.

A win and a loss put the girls in a third place play off against The Clere. With both teams securely fielding, the rounders scored were kept to a minimum. The girls were hitting the ball much more consistently but unfortunately not quite far enough to gain many half rounders. The win fell just out of reach with The Clere finishing with 9 ½ rounders to our 6.
Best Batter: Skyla, Best Fielder: Minnie.

A lovely afternoon despite not quite getting the result we wanted, there is plenty of time to practice at Rounders club ready for next year! 

Year 7 and Year 9 Rounders Friendlies vs Wellington
On Wednesday afternoon the Year 7 and 9 teams travelled to Wellington Academy for an 8 a side friendly fixture. For the Year 7 team, this was their first rounders match; for the Year 9’s after winning the District Rounders Tournament we decided to mix up the positions a little!
Playing two innings of 30 good balls gave the 9’s the opportunities to use different fielding strategies and they were very effective in whittling down the batters quickly with some excellent bowler - backstop - 1st base play from Sophie, Dotty and Isla. The 9’s weren’t quite as free hitting as usual when they went into bat, but still led at the halfway point 8-5 ½.

The girls kept their new positions for the second innings, to similar success, with some good deep fielding by Molly in particular. Another decent bat meant that the final score ended up 16 ½ - 13 to Harrow Way.  Best batter: Dotty. Best fielder: Lucy.

The 7’s took on the challenge of their first rounders game with a positive outlook and knowing that they had to work well together and communicate in order to be effective.
The first innings went by relatively smoothly. Despite entering the halfway point 7 - 9 down, there was still plenty of time to pull back the scoreline.

The second batting innings showed excellent potential. Balls were consistently being hit, however some excellent catches by the Wellington fielders halved the team quite quickly. Hollie W, Holly P, Eva and Lily had to last around 16 balls and they did so well, picking up half rounders but relying on mis-fielding to sneak in the full rounders.

The second innings of fielding demonstrated a slight lack of experience. The girls allowed Wellington to gain too many half rounders and despite an excellent catch by Darcie, they just couldn’t quite keep the score low enough to secure the win. Final score 20 - 15 ½ to Wellington.
Best batter: Hollie W, Best fielder: Darcie.

Check out the latest news, fundraising initiatives and upcoming events from the PTA here - harrowwaypta.charityhive.co.uk

For local community events and information, please click the button below:

Thruxton Retro Presents Superfunk

A weekend filled with iconic music, family friendly entertainment, racing action, car and motorbike clubs, legendary machines, soap box racing, fun fair, circus skills and more, all at the fastest race circuit in the UK. More information can be found here: thruxtonracing.co.uk/racing/thruxton-retro

The Harrow Way community can get 10% off tickets! Use the discount code: HARROW

Not only that, but the school will receive 20% commission every time the code is used.

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Harrow Way Community School,
Harrow Way,
Andover,
Hampshire.
SP10 3RH