Artists from Smithdon High School impressed art lovers when they showcased their talents at an exhibition held in the Town Hall.

Eighteen GCSE Art students from our school were exhibiting their creative work, which featured an array of different media from biro, pencils, and prints, to textiles and oil paintings.

“The exhibition was named ‘Gatherings’, after the project title students were given in their exam project,” explained Sian Wheeler, Head of Art and Design and Technology at Smithdon, which is part of the West Norfolk Academies Trust.

“Each student had two of their final pieces on display which were from coursework and exam projects.

“The students created work from the themes of ‘Reflection’, ‘Similarities and Differences’, and ‘Gatherings’.”

It was the third year that the show had been held at the Town Hall, with more than 200 visitors attending across a two-day period.

“The public feedback on the exhibition as a whole, praised the work of our talented Smithdon students,” continued Mrs Wheeler.

 “A few pieces were mentioned often as stand-out – Ava M’s woven piece, Rhenaya C’s colour pencil Candy Canes, and Megan M’s biro tiger.”

Another highlight was a drawing installation that had been created by more than 300 primary school children, alongside Smithdon students, and to which visitors could contribute, enabling it to grow and evolve throughout the exhibition.

Staff involved in the event included our Deputy Head, Sarah Robinson, and Assistant Head Alysha Moat. They were also joined by professional artist – and former Smithdon student – Emily Chapman, who was on hand to select a winner for the Emily Chapman Art Award, which will be presented at a Year 11 Awards Evening in November.

“The public were in awe of the talent and work produced at Smithdon, with many asking if work was for sale, or which students were going on to study Art further,” added Mrs Wheeler.

“This event is so important in raising the profile of the arts. It enables people to see the students in a different light, and their talents.”

Primary school pupils got a taste of the next stage in their education when our school opened its doors for the day on Friday 11 July.

Smithdon High School, which is part of the West Norfolk Academies Trust, welcomed around 130 pupils to its Year 5 Experience Day, with participating primaries including fellow WNAT members Heacham Junior and Snettisham, along with Hunstanton, Docking, Brancaster, Sandringham and West Newton, Flitcham, and Dersingham.

“During the day, they took part in three activities,” said our Deputy Headteacher, Sarah Robinson, who organised the event. “These ranged from creating a collaborative artwork, to the Egg Drop Challenge, to a workout in Smithdon’s Fitness Suite.

“We also had some drama activities happening, and some great coding work going on in ICT.”

Other staff members meeting the visitors included our Headteacher, Amanda Gibbins, and Alysha Moat, who is Assistant Head of Key Stage 3. The children were also joined by some of our Year 9 students, who offered additional support during the visit.

“We have run a Year 5 transition event for well over ten years,” continued Mrs Robinson. “It is well established in our calendar and one of the key events in collaboration with our primary partners.”

“This is part of our wide-ranging transition programme, where we work with all our feeder primary schools to build links and make the transition process at the end of Year 6 as smooth as possible,” she added.

“By the time the students come up to us for our Year 5 day, they have already been up to Smithdon in Year 4 for a sports event, and have met a lot of our teachers during Art, Science, and Reading outreach activities held in the primary schools.

“Transition to high school is a huge event in a child’s life, so the more comfortable we can make our students feel by running events like these, the better.”

It was bienvenue, bienvenido, and willkomen, when students from our school joined others from across the West Norfolk Academies Trust to test their skills at the Trust’s Languages Spelling Bee Final on Friday 30 June.

The Year 7 modern language students had previously won their way through the earlier stages of the competition, which had been held in class at the individual high schools.

It was the first time the event had taken place, with 18 students from Smithdon, Springwood, St Clement’s, and Marshland making it to the final, which was hosted by Marshland and supported by the school’s Year 7 cohort.

“The Department at Springwood High School have been running a spelling bee competition for a number of years, and the Languages Team decided this year to extend this to the rest of the Trust schools, and then to celebrate the successes of the students by have a cross-Trust final,” explained Leah Hawkins, Cross-Trust Lead for Modern Foreign Languages.

Languages tested in the contest included French, Spanish, and German, with vocabulary covering topics such as family members, numbers, colours, days, months, adjectives, and greetings.

“Students were given lists of 100 pieces of key vocabulary per language which they practised,” continued Mrs Hawkins. “They then had one minute to translate the English word they were given into the target language, and then spell it out using the target language alphabet, including any relevant accents.

“For the final, all 18 students had their one minute to spell as much as they could; the second round was the eight with the top scores; and the final four then spelled for a third minute to determine the winner of the competition.”

Coming out on top was Year 7 student Jasper Hawkins from Springwood, who correctly spelt 16 French words in one minute to take first place, beating classmate Anieshka Daniel, who came second with 12 German words in one minute.

Third place went to Patrick Roman, also in Year 7 at Springwood, who spelt 11 Spanish words correctly in one minute.

Each of the three won an Amazon voucher, while everyone participating received a certificate and commemorative blazer pin badge.

“The Spelling Bee has given us an opportunity to celebrate the students’ recollection and knowledge of key vocabulary, as well as increasing awareness of the phonetics of the foreign language being studied,” added Mrs Hawkins.

“In addition, it helps build student confidence in public speaking, and the overall profile of language learning in school.”

There were sports cars, motorbikes, classic cars, a double-decker bus, and even a Scooby Doo-style ‘Mystery Machine’, when graduating students from Smithdon High School arrived for their Leavers’ Prom on Thursday 26 June.

The Class of 2025 were greeted by friends, family, and well-wishers as they reached Knights Hill Hotel in King’s Lynn for a night of well-earned celebration.

The 73 Year 11 students were dressed for the occasion, with a host of colourful ball gowns, cocktail dresses, and evening wear on display.

Inside, the venue boasted a suitably celebratory red, gold, and black colour scheme, which had been chosen by the Year 11 Student Leadership Team, and included tables decorated with balloons in the appropriate shades.

Entry was via laminated tickets which had been designed to act as lasting souvenirs of the evening, while attractions on offer included a pizza buffet, and disco.

There was also a sweet cart stocked with traditional confectionery, along with a commemorative photo booth, which allowed the partygoers to preserve their memories for prosperity.

The Year 11 students were joined by members of staff for the event, which was supported by Hunstanton Charity Shop.

“It was great to celebrate our students’ end of schooling at Smithdon High School,” said Dan Ward, Assistant Headteacher and Head of Years 10 and 11 at our school, which is part of the West Norfolk Academies Trust.

“Everyone enjoyed the evening.”

https://townandaround.net/news/from-ball-gowns-to-buses-smithdon-leavers-celebrate-in-style

Not many schools get to have their own anthem, so it was a particularly special occasion when pupils from Heacham Junior were able to sing theirs together for the first time – with help from Smithdon High School Choir.

Both schools are part of the West Norfolk Academies Trust, and the new anthem was specially composed by the Trust’s Peripatetic Music Lead, Benjamin Howell.

“On Tuesday 18 June a collaborative sing-along took place at Heacham Junior School,” he said.

“The event brought together children from three Trust schools, who joined voices to perform a special composition I’d written – a school anthem for Heacham Junior titled ‘In Our Village by the Sea’.

“This anthem was created specifically for this event, reflecting the local area and the spirit of the community.”

Children of all ages across the school, from Years 3 to 6, took part in the event, along with Year 2 pupils from Heacham Infant School, and the members of Smithdon Choir, who ranged in age from Years 7 to 11.

They were also supported by the Dersingham Community Choir, an adult choir who joined the young singers for the final chorus of the anthem.

“My role as the Trust Peripatetic Music Lead has been to develop and coordinate this initiative, with the aim of uniting students and members of the wider community through collaborative music-making,” continued Mr Howell, who organised the event with the help of Music Teachers Nic Bouskill and Gill Smith, as well as Heacham Junior’s Executive Headteacher, Louise Jackson, and Executive Deputy Head Emma Hunt, and Andrea Barnes, who is our Head of Music.

“Learning of the piece began through assemblies and rehearsals led by myself across the participating schools,” he added.

“The event ran from 1pm to 3pm, with smaller group rehearsals leading into a shared performance later in the afternoon.

“The final rendition was recorded as a memento of this collaborative effort.”

The anniversary of VE Day was particularly poignant to a student at our school who helped create a special display in the school library.

The teenager has grown-up with stories of his great-grandfather who flew a bomber in World War II.

“I have heard all his amazing stories from my grandad, including one about how he got frostbite in both legs. I’d already been really interested in the world wars since primary school when I first found some books about them. But hearing those family stories made it feel more real to me. That’s what really sparked my interest in World War II history, especially the planes,” said Charles Werner-Smith.

Set-up with help from librarian Marie Taylor, memorabilia on show at the school  included items borrowed from the Norfolk County Council Library Service, which ranged from wartime propaganda posters to celebration pictures taken 80 years ago.

“Charles has a keen interest in World War II, especially the planes. He wanted to commemorate VE Day and approached me with the idea of creating a small display in the library,” she said.

There was also a mini street party with sausage rolls, cake, lemonade and music from Dame Vera Lynn which gave students the chance to step back in time and reflect on the day, and what had happened during the war years.

A group of students also joined the town’s official event held at the war memorial, known as the Cenotaph, this morning (8) when the commemorative flag was raised. Saturday sees a Gala Day at the Town Hall from 2.30pm. A street party is being held on Sunday from noon after a parade and service.