On Wednesday 22nd October, Alison Moore from the University of Hertfordshire visited KWS to deliver a presentation on Degree Apprenticeships to students in Years 12 and 13.

It was an insightful and engaging session that provided students with valuable information about Degree Apprenticeships — an increasingly popular post-18 pathway for those finishing sixth form. Alison explained how these programmes allow students to earn a salary while gaining a university-level qualification, combining academic study with practical, hands-on experience in the workplace.

Well done to all the sixth formers who attended, and a big thank you to Alison for joining us and sharing such useful insights about this exciting route into higher education and employment.

We’ve had a fascinating collection of new books arrive in our library recently, donated by the Chinese Embassy, including some that are bilingual. Many of them feature wonderful works of art, there are some poetry books, and an absolutely beautiful book about the giant panda, which will likely become a firm favourite in the library; the photos of the pandas in their natural environment are stunning. 

These books were donated to us because there is a link between China and a citizen of Harpenden. George Hogg was born in Harpenden in 1915, and studied at St George’s School. During the second Sino-Japanese war, in 1944, he led 66 orphaned boys 700km across a mountain range to safety in the Gansu province. Much of the journey was completed on foot through snow-covered mountain passes.

In China, he is now regarded as a friend of the country, and in his memory we have been gifted these lovely books. The 66 young boys were saved, but George himself came to quite a sad end. Having heroically rescued the boys, he hurt his toe whilst playing basketball with them. The wound became infected and he died. Legend has it that as he lay dying of a stubbed toe, the boys sang him the nursery rhymes and poems that he had taught them. Maybe some of those very poems are in the books we now have on offer in the library…

Also this week, in our wonderful library, we are celebrating Diwali. We have a display of books connected to Diwali, including one written by the family of one of our teachers – Mrs Rauniyar; so do drop in and have a search through to see if one appeals!

The last few weeks have seen our students and staff take part in a variety of activities around the school to mark Black History Month. As well as assemblies for each year group discussing the theme of  ‘Standing Firm in Power and Pride’ which recognises the strength and resilience of Black communities globally, our students were invited to take part in poetry workshops with Adisa the Verbalizer organised by Mrs Yates.

Additionally, KWS were invited by Herts for Learning to a conference hosted by Kit Brown, a primary school teacher, who has found social media stardom through his messages of hope and resilience and is now in talks with Downing Street and the BBC to help raise aspirations amongst young people.

Accompanied by Mrs Hobson and Miss Annie, our Sixth Form student leaders visited the Nobel School in Stevenage, where Kit spoke about his life experiences, inspiring young people as a role model in overcoming challenges.

It has also been a month of reflection, with Mr Bowsher hosting Year group assemblies looking at the contributions made by African Caribbean military personnel in the World Wars for Britain and how without those, Britain would be a very different place today.

Our Year 10 and Year 11 Drama students took a thrilling trip to the historic Alexandra Palace Theatre to watch The Woman in Black – and it certainly didn’t disappoint! From ghostly whispers to heart-stopping jumps, the performance brought live theatre to life in the most spine-tingling way. Students will now use this unforgettable experience to analyse and evaluate the production for their GCSE exams, exploring how acting, design and atmosphere combine to create real theatrical magic.