Students from a WNAT school said au revoir to King’s Lynn when they crossed the Channel for a four-day French adventure.

The Year 7 and 8 group from Springwood High School stayed at Le Chateau de Warsy in Northern France during the action-packed trip, which included a day spent exploring the famous sights of Paris, as well as a host of different activities and cultural experiences.

Head of Modern Languages Charlotte Hannah accompanied the 41 students, along with Head of Key Stage 3 French Penny Skipper, Teacher and Pupil Premium Manager Luke Thurlow, and Teaching Assistant Kaylea Williamson.

“We visited the beach at Berck-sur-Mer; took part in a high ropes treetop activity similar to Go Ape; visited Montdidier, a local town, and practised French buying cakes at an authentic patisserie; and visited a chocolate factory,” she said.

“We spent a day in Paris, where we visited Montmartre and the Sacre Coeur, and had time to do some souvenir shopping and see the local artists, climbed the 674 stairs to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower, and took a boat ride on the Seine.”

The trip is an annual highlight on the school calendar.

Mrs Hannah added: “Teachers at Springwood believe these trips are essential in enriching our students’ school experience.

“The opportunity for students to visit France, practise their linguistic skills with native speakers, and absorb real French culture is an experience that just can’t be fully replicated in the classroom.

“We hope that these kinds of extracurricular activities will be remembered by students long after they leave school.”

It was full speed ahead, when aspiring engineers at a WNAT school took part in an innovative Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths (STEM) initiative, which tasked them with designing, building, and racing their own full-sized, petrol-powered go-kart.

The STEM on Track programme at Springwood High School saw a group of Key Stage 3 students take part in a series of sessions that combined practical engineering with classroom learning.

Victoria Mann is Head of Year 7 and STEM Lead at the school in King’s Lynn.

“Alongside constructing the kart, participants explored the mathematics and science behind engineering, gained insight into the motorsport industry, and developed a range of transferable skills, including problem solving, teamwork, communication, and resilience,” she said.

“The programme has been designed to support improved attendance, engagement, and attainment by providing students with meaningful, hands-on learning experiences that inspire confidence, and help them discover areas of interest, whether in engineering, design, marketing, or project management.”

Led by Springwood teachers Dan Beech and Luke Thurlow, the scheme was made possible through funding awarded by the Norfolk Community Foundation via the JP Blanch Fund.

Further support came from Councillor Paul Bland and the Councillor Community Grant Fund, the College of West Anglia, Adrian Flux via Maze Media, Sandles Cars, Advanced Engineering, and Bespak, whose backing enabled the students to participate in testing and race events alongside more than 100 teams from across the UK and beyond.

Mrs Mann continued: “The programme also benefited from outstanding support from the wider West Norfolk community. As part of the project, students approached local businesses to secure sponsorship, providing valuable opportunities to develop communication, presentation, and networking skills, while building connections with local employers.

“Although mechanical issues prevented the team from achieving the results they had hoped for on race day, the experience proved invaluable. Students had the opportunity to meet fellow competitors, attend a STEM career fair, explore future careers pathways, and see a Formula One car up close – experiences that inspired and motivated many of those involved.”

The success of STEM on Track at Springwood has seen it shortlisted for the Flourish 2026 Awards in the Resilience category, where the judging panel praised its positive impact on students’ personal development and wellbeing. The school also plans to repeat the programme next year.

Mrs Mann added: “As preparations begin for the 2026-2027 Springwood Racing Team, the school is keen to build on this year’s success. Springwood High School is seeking to expand partnerships with local businesses, particularly within the engineering, manufacturing, and automotive sectors, to provide additional sponsorship, workplace visits, and industry experience for students.

“The success of STEM on Track reflects Springwood High School’s commitment to delivering an inclusive, ambitious curriculum that extends learning beyond traditional qualifications.

“By providing real-world experiences, and meaningful employer engagement, the school is helping students develop the confidence, skills, and aspirations needed for future education and employment.”

It was an immersive, whole-school, musical experience, when the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain visited one of the Trust’s secondaries.

The 77-strong orchestra, whose members range in age from 14 to 19, spent an action-packed day at Springwood High School in King’s Lynn, where they staged two concert performances for the students, as well as ‘pop ups’ in classrooms, a creative music workshop, and even a brief foray next door to fellow WNAT member Gaywood Primary.

Our Director of Music, Robin Norman, helped to organise the event.

“The whole of Year 8, along with GCSE and A-Level Music students, instrumental students, and members of our extra-curricular groups were all involved as audience members watching one of the two performances,” he said.

“In addition to this, 27 members of the school Concert Band took part in a ‘side-by-side’ experience, where they sat alongside members of the NYO and were conducted in a rehearsal by their professional conductor on music from How to Train Your Dragon. A further nine students were involved in a creative music workshop.

“Members of the NYO also roamed, performing in Maths and Business classrooms as ‘pop-up’ performers, and on the playground at Gaywood Primary School to most of their school.

“Finally they roamed the school fields at break time, and gave some of our students the opportunity to try an instrument. This was truly a ‘music takeover’ day, where everyone in the school experienced something.”

The day was supported by front office and admin staff at Springwood, along with the Music Prefect Team students, who acted as chaperones, guides, and runners.

Mr Norman continued: “Everything that took place was a tremendous experience for those involved. But the two main performances, where the full orchestra performed a wide range of classical and film music, had those present absolutely spellbound.

“The facial expressions and wonder on many of the students were amazing, especially when the harp came in. Many of our students will never have heard a full orchestra, and, indeed, would not have seen a harp. I think they were all surprised by the amazing sounds that were created.”

Springwood was the first school to be visited by the Orchestra this year on its annual tour, and one of just four in Norfolk and Suffolk to be chosen for the honour.

Mr Norman added: “They have not been to Springwood before. However, they were incredibly complimentary with the atmosphere and ethos of what we do, and, hopefully, they will return again in the future.

“This was an event that many of the students will not just remember for a few hours or days, but rather something they will still speak about in months and years – something they will remember from their days at Springwood.

“In the words of a student in Year 9, ‘The best day ever! Can we do this every year, please?’

It was time to celebrate the Trust’s young carers, when St Clement’s High School hosted an end-of-year event for students with care responsibilities.

The Young Carers’ Summer Party on Thursday 16 July was attended by more than 100 of the school’s young carers, as well as students from fellow WNAT member Springwood High School.

Young Carer Lead Robyn Fisher organised the annual event, which featured inflatables and games on the school field, along with refreshments provided by an ice cream van.

“We invited all 102 young carers, including our Year 11 carer cohort which have recently left,” she said. “We also had Springwood young carers joining us again this year.”

St Clement’s recognises and supports its young carers with other activities and events throughout the year, including a Christmas Party.

Mrs Fisher added: “These events are really important to recognise the young carers and all their hard work.

“Young carers often don’t get a chance to enjoy being young and carefree, due to their selfless caring role, so we like to acknowledge what they do, and give them the opportunity to enjoy themselves and wind down after the academic year.”

An aspiring author from a West Norfolk Academies Trust school has seen her talent recognised with a prestigious writing accolade.

Millie Follen, who is a Year 12 student at Springwood High School, received the Norfolk Young Writers Award for her short story ‘He’s Not There’, which she composed while attending a creative writing group at the school.

“The piece was about a young boy who was grieving his brother and struggled to understand his absence both within his home and his everyday life,” she said.

“I found out about the competition through my wonderful teacher, Miss Richardson, who runs the club – so a lot of my thanks for the award goes to Miss Richardson and her incredible encouragement.

“The piece was mainly formed through a prompt from my teacher about constructing a very strong narrative voice. I took inspiration from the opening paragraph of J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, which was a piece that my teacher gave us to take inspiration from.

“When deciding my narrative voice, I thought that there was no better way to construct an easily identifiable character than by placing myself in the shoes of a young child, allowing me to highlight the naivety and the tragedy that comes with dealing with grief and loss at an early age.”

The annual competition, which is organised by the National Centre for Writing in Norwich, is open to children and young people aged ten to 18, and covers both fiction and non-fiction.

Winners in the 16- to 18-year-old category, including Millie, were also nominated as Young Norfolk Laureates, qualifying them for extra writing opportunities and mentoring.

She continued: “I was entirely elated when I realised that I had won the competition. Creative Writing Club had really helped my confidence when writing and sharing my work, but winning the competition just exemplified that feeling commonly shared by writers that what I write is something that people truly enjoy reading.

“One of my worries when submitting my winning piece was that its ideas were too ‘out there’ and too far-fetched to resonate fully with readers. However, in hearing both the other incredible work produced by the winners, as well as the applause I received myself after reading my piece at the ceremony, I realised that the winners of this competition were some of the writers of the future, including myself, and, with technology such as AI, and the reproduction of similar ideas across the literary canon, readers want to hear originality in work, rather than a regurgitation of the past.”

Luke Rawling is Head of Year 12 at Springwood, which is part of the West Norfolk Academies Trust, and was delighted with the sixth former’s achievement.

“Millie is a fantastic member of the Springwood Sixth Form community, and a keen member of our Creative Writing Society here at the Sixth Form,” he said.

“We are so proud that Millie has won the Young Norfolk Writing Prize and has been nominated as a Young Norfolk Laureate.

“I am particularly touched to hear that, thanks to the award, Millie has now realised the potential she has, and is considering a career as a future author.”

From cakes and crafts to choreography and sport, pupils at a WNAT school explored a host of exciting career opportunities.

Children from Years 2 to 6 at West Lynn Primary took part in Apprentice Day, where they spent the day gaining in-depth, hands-on experience of a series of different professions. Choices on offer included baking, carpentry, art, sewing, crafts, jewellery making, teaching, and journalism, along with rugby, sports retail, and even musical theatre.

Assistant Headteacher Dan Ryan organised the annual event, as well as leading the carpentry group.

“Once the children have completed an application to their top three jobs, they complete a mini CV selling themselves to their chosen career,” he explained. “They are then allocated one of the activities where they spend the whole day learning from an expert in that field.

“Most of the activities are very practical, and the children get to have a hands-on approach with one of the careers.”

Among the activities on offer were building benches, baking cakes and biscuits, sewing bookmarks and an apron, and creating tie-dye shirts; while the theatre group choreographed a routine to ‘Circle of Life’, the West Norfolk Rugby Club put their apprentices through their sporting paces, and the budding journalists went in search of a scoop.

Staff, parents, and volunteers supported the event as ‘experts’, including Stephen Miller and Elizabeth Buckingham from the West Norfolk Rugby Club, and JD Sports Executive Rickey Devonish.

Mr Ryan added: “I think, in an area where children can struggle with aspirations and self-belief, days like Apprentice Day give them a taster of what they could be, and remind them of what they can achieve.

“Every child left with a smile on their face, and a sense of accomplishment.”