As part of the Government’s £20m summer school plan, Year 6 students were invited to give up part of their summer holiday in exchange for extra lessons and 120 students jumped at the chance to attend our school.

“We were overwhelmed by the fantastic response from our new students,” said Headteacher Nigel Willingham. “When we started planning this we thought we’d be happy if half the year group attended but almost all the whole year group attended at some point during the week.”

The students explained to their MP that while they had attended extra lessons in subjects such as English, Maths and history, there had also been time for other activities. All students undertook CPR training, they learnt about looking after bees and even had a visit from Emma’s Hedgehog Hotel.

Mrs Towle, our Assistant Headteacher who organised the week-long programme, continued: “During lockdown students missed out on social interaction so we included a series of fun activities as part of the programme, one day the whole group visited InflataNation and had a brilliant time. We hope it has given them a real boost of confidence ready for the new school year.”

During Friday's visit to the school, our soon-to-be student’s explained their work to James and had the opportunity to ask questions about being an MP.

On seeing the impact of the programme, James Wild said: “I was pleased to have the opportunity to visit St Clement’s High School and to meet children starting Year 7 in September.

“It was impressive to hear about the creative approach taken in the summer school lessons and other activities to help boost catch up and build confidence. The enthusiasm of the pupils and teachers with lots of smiling faces was great to see.”