Work Experience with UCL Mechanical Engineering

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In July, Alex B took part in a week-long work experience placement with the UCL Mechanical Engineering Department on their Professional Services pathway. Alex gained insight into professional services administration and academic roles within a university department.
He learnt about the research of PhD students and visited a range of specialist laboratories: an Engine Lab, Biomaterials Lab, Fluid Lab – where he observed a tank test and the Electric Propulsion Lab. In a practical activity with the IT team, he dismantled and reassembled a laptop, analysing its internal components.
The week concluded with students sharing their experience with their peers and being presented with a certificate.
Find out more about the UCL Mechanical Engineering work experience programme here: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/engineering/work-experience-ucl-mechanical-engineering

KWSixth Update: A Strong Start to the Term

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Welcome back! Here are the latest announcements and updates for our Sixth Form community.

A Fantastic Start for Year 12 A huge well done to our new Year 12 students for a brilliant start to the term. The focus, maturity, and positive attitude displayed in classrooms and study spaces across this first week have been outstanding. It is fantastic to see everyone settling into Sixth Form life so quickly and setting such a strong precedent for the year ahead.

Thank You to Year 12 Parents & Carers Thank you to all the parents and carers who joined us for the Year 12 Information Evening on Tuesday. Strong partnerships between home and school are essential to student success at Key Stage 5, and we greatly appreciate your time and engagement.

For anyone unable to attend, or for those who would like to review the presentation, the event slides are attached to this newsletter email.

Year 13: UCAS Predicted Grades Reminder A key reminder for Year 13 students and parents: the formal report detailing UCAS predicted grades will be sent home on Thursday 8th October. 

These next few weeks are critical. We encourage all Year 13s to maintain total focus, work closely with their subject teachers, and put maximum effort into their current assessments and independent study to ensure their report reflects their full potential.

Thank you The Sixth Form Team

Congratulations Year 7 on your first week at KWS!

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Miss Bird and Mrs Turnham would like to give a huge shoutout to our Year 7 students who have had an excellent start to their journey at KWS! Students have shown they are Ready, Respectful, and Responsible. We are proud of every single one as they have had to adapt to such a huge change. Well done!

Welcome back to the Library

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Welcome back everyone! We hope you all had a lovely summer break, and we’re looking forward to seeing everyone back in the library, enjoying all we have to offer in the 2026-27 academic year. Our team are ready and waiting to see you all, and to help you pick out books that you want and need, and hopefully something new to challenge and delight you. We’d like to welcome all our new students, especially the new year 7 cohort, and the new joiners in year 12.

Our library is open every break and lunch time, and also after school, until 4.30pm Monday to Thursday, and 4pm on a Friday. Everyone is automatically a member of the school library, so drop in and get browsing. And don’t forget that you can access audiobooks and ebooks via the ePlatform on your Chromebook. All students who are new to the school will be shown how to access and use our ePlatform; it has a wealth of books for inspiration, enjoyment, and of course, books and textbooks to aid your studies. We also have a printer and various other resources for all year groups to use, including our KWSixth students. And do look out for various library-based activities throughout the year, we always have lots going on.

We also have some great opportunities for students to get involved in the library. We have a Reading Ambassadors scheme and a Student Library Assistants team. If you think you might be interested in either of these roles then have a look at the information on Class Charts, or drop into the library and ask us for more information. We look forward to seeing you all in the library soon.

Upcoming Events

September

julSummer Holidays

tue22sepAll DayP7 Starts

tue22sepAll DayUKMT Maths Competition for Girls (Y11/12/13 selected) - AWE

October

sun27septhu01octSpanish Trip Y10 - CKE

thu01oct8:55 am9:45 amY7 National Poetry Day Assembly - SYA

thu01oct9:45 am11:45 amPoetry Sessions (invited students) - SYA

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Trust Information

Harpenden Secondary Education Trust

Company Number: 09238779
Registered in England and Wales
Registered Address: Katherine Warington School, Lower Luton Road, Harpenden, Herts, AL5 5FH

Chair Of Trustees: Jenny Howarth, j.howarth@kwschool.co.uk

Contact Us

Katherine Warington School,
Lower Luton Road,
Harpenden,
Hertfordshire,
AL5 5FH

Telephone: 01582 314777
admin@kwschool.co.uk