The Hazlegrovian 2023-2024

THE

H azlegrovian

HAZLEGROVE PREPARATORY SCHOOL 2023 - 2024

Headmaster’s Speech 2024

Well, what a year it has been. One that started in a glorious September heatwave, buoyed by a glowing ISI inspection report, before being battered by storms and flooding over the Christmas holidays, with more rain in January, February, March, April and May, before a glorious conclusion to the year. And, of course, the year culminated with our very smart new school drive.

The feedback from our parents and visitors has been extremely positive, although, linked to this, I’m afraid I am obliged to alert you to an email that I received last week from one of my extremely concerned bus drivers which reads as follows:

“Dear Mr Benbow, I am concerned about the actions of some of our children in their parents’ cars on the new school drive. I have seen children hanging out of windows and standing with their heads sticking out of sunroofs.”

All I can say to that is, you know who you are, and you have been warned, but frankly, if I had a sunroof on my Fiat Panda, I would have been sorely tempted to do the same –the new drive is that good.

Most importantly, we have all been treated to a year of happy, curious, creative, confident children, all of whom have thrived in their own individual way, and today is a priceless opportunity to celebrate this.

EcoFest

Summer Fete and Dog Show

Angels at the Ritz

Academic and Form Prizes

Scholarships and Awards

Academic Scholarships and Awards

George

Elizabeth

Sofia G-R

William

Alex

Wilfred

Allegra

Charlie

Lily

Drama

Sofia G-R

Charlotte

Daniel S

Daniel

Sports

Bibi

George

Elizabeth

George

Isabel

Oliver

Archie

Naomi

Lochie

Daniel

Charles

Arabella

King’s

King’s

King’s

King’s

King’s

Headmaster’s Prizes

The McKechnie Bowl Lizzie C-T

This prize goes to an outstanding all-rounder in a number of areas of School, in other words a true key player.

The Shining Light Trophy for Boarding Charlotte H and Charlie W

Our Boarding Award goes to a pupil who has been a boarder for at least three years and who has been a shining light within our boarding community. They will have demonstrated a commitment to full boarding, made an outstanding contribution to the school community and been a role model for our younger boarders. They will have displayed old fashioned, yet eternal values including honesty, integrity, good manners and selflessness.

The Tim Catley-Day Trophy for the Unsung Hero Lochie L

This is awarded to someone who has made a significant contribution to the quality of life at Hazlegrove during their time here, usually across a broad spectrum of school life, but who may not have gained individual recognition in one particular area.

The Sopwith Supra Limen Trophy Alice H

Supra, beyond, and Limen, threshold, beyond the threshold. It is an unusual trophy, but it is one that will linger in the memory of the recipient. It is awarded to a pupil who has completed the six years of the Prep School and who has made a significant and broad contribution to the quality of life during their time at Hazlegrove.

The John Carnegie Forwards, Onwards and Upwards Trophy Grace L

Many of you will remember him. He is the man with the missing finger. The trophy is a bronze cast of that famous right hand. This is awarded to a pupil who epitomises the Forwards, Onwards, Upwards sentiment who also displays a natural enthusiasm in all they do, sometimes perhaps in a slightly unconventional manner.

In academics, the curriculum has remained as diverse as ever, with a rigour spanning not only our core subjects but also incorporating areas such as Music, Singing, DT, Art, Food Technology, Drama, Swimming, PE and Games.

Year 8 have enjoyed the new option of Spanish as an alternative to Latin, whilst World War II has played a prominent theme throughout the year, with the introduction of a new topic in Year 4, including a trip to East Cranmore. This tied in very well with our D-Day 80th anniversary commemorations, which was a great example of pupils themselves taking the lead, culminating, of course, with our Year 8 Production, Angels at the Ritz.

We have even managed to incorporate the topic of investment with Year 8 this term, featuring a highly competitive share portfolio competition, and one in which the Headmaster managed to lose more money than any of the other twenty-two teams. Another sobering reminder that a career in stockbroking was a poor choice.

A

Sports Monitor

Sports Scholarship

Bryanston

Comments

My special memory of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip and all the amazing activities I got to do with my friends.

My favourite club has been Swimming.

Emily A

Lower School Monitor

Sports Scholarship

Sherborne Girls

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove were the Leavers’ Trip and Hockey matches with the team.

My favourite club was Cricket.

Manuel A D

Sports Monitor

Senior School

Returning to Spain

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove were meeting all my teachers and class mates and the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite clubs were Cooking and Football.

Lily A

Prop Monitor

Art Scholarship

Royal High School Bath

Senior School

Sexey’s School

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove were the River Dart Trip and the Leavers’ Trip as I got to know people better and try new things.

My favorite club has been Art.

Poppy B

Drama Monitor

Senior School

Sherborne Girls

Comments

My special memories of Hazlegrove were being a boarder and singing and dancing with the other boarders. I also enjoyed the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite clubs were Cooking and Art.

Florence B

Pre-Prep Monitor

Senior School Canford

Comments

My highlight of Hazlegrove was all the activities I got to do with my friends on the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Touch Rugby.

Beau B

Pre-Prep Monitor

Sports Scholarship

Sherborne School

Comments

My highlight of Hazlegrove was winning Judo IAPS.

My favourite clubs have been Judo and Cricket.

Magnus B

Sports Monitor

Senior School

King’s School Bruton

Comments

My special memory of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip with all my friends.

My favourite club was Football.

George B

Head Boy (Summer Term)

Prefect

Science and Prop Monitor

Academic Exhibition and Sports Scholarship

Radley College

Comments

My special memories at Hazlegrove have been taking part in National Finals for Athletics and swimming and the surfing on the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite clubs were Athletics, Swimming,Squash and Cooking. .....................................................

Elizabeth C-T

Head Girl (Summer Term)

Prefect

Lower School Monitor

Academic and Sports Scholarships

Stonyhurst College

Comments

My highlights of Hazlegrove were the bus rides to matches and concerts and the Leavers’ and Ski Trips.

My favourite club was Laser Pistol.

Victoire de R

Senior School

Returning to France

Comments

My favourite memory of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip sitting on the beach with my friends.

My favourite clubs were Cooking and Woodland

George E

Sports Monitor

Sports Scholarship King’s School Bruton

Senior School

Sexey’s School

Comments

My special memory of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip. It was so much fun!

My favourite clubs were Cricket and Football.

Rosie F

Sports Monitor

Senior School Blundell’s

Comments

My special memories of Hazlegrove were the bus journey to Cornwall and all the fun moments we had on the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Cricket.

Archie G

Head Boy (Autumn Term)

Prefect

Sports Monitor

Sports Scholarship King’s School Bruton

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove have been the Leavers’ Trip and swimming in the Olympic Pool in the London Aquatic Centre.

Joschua G

Tech Monitor

Senior School King’s School Bruton

Comments

My favourite memory of Hazlegrove has been the Leavers’ Trip because of all the fun activities.

My favourite club was Minecraft.

Sofia G-R

Lower School Monitor

Academic and Drama Scholarships King’s School Bruton

Comments

My special memories of Hazlegrove were the Year 8 Production and bodyboarding and surfing on the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite clubs were Cooking and Woodland Games

Oliver G

Sports Monitor

Sports Scholarship Millfield

Comments

My favourite highlight of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip and jumping into the sea from the cliffs.

My favourite club was Football. .....................................................

Alice H

Prefect

Pre-Prep Monitor

Senior School

Marlborough College

Comments

My highlights of Hazlegrove were the Leavers’ Trip with all the amazing activities and the River Dart Trip where I made lots of friends.

My favourite club was Woodland Games.

Beatrice H

Lower School Monitor

Senior School King’s School Bruton

Comments

My favourite memory of Hazlegrove was swimming in the sea while coasteering with my friends. We laughed a lot.

.....................................................

Oliver H

Pre-Prep Monitor

Senior School King’s School Bruton

Comments

My special memory of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip where I made so many new friends.

My favourite club was Cricket..

Sholto H

Prefect

Sports Monitor

Senior School

Sherborne School

Comments

My highlight of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip as it was fun.

Charlotte H

Pre-Prep Monitor

Drama Scholarship King’s School Bruton

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove were the Ski Trip and the Leavers’ Trip. I made lots of fun memories.

My favourite club was Cooking.

Naomi H

Lower School Monitor

Sports Scholarship King’s School Bruton

Comments

My highlights of Hazlegrove were playing lots of sports especially Hockey and taking part in the amazing activities on the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Cricket. .....................................................

Acer K

Sports Monitor

Senior School

Sherborne School

Comments

My special memories of Hazlegrove were camping with friends on the Leavers’ Trip and the surfing was a lot of fun.

My favourite club was Football.

Holly L

Lower School Monitor

Senior School

King’s School Bruton

Comments

My highlight of Hazlegrove was making fun memories on the Leavers’ Trip

My favourite club was Drama.

Lochie L

Flag Monitor

Sports Scholarship King’s School Bruton

Senior School

Sexey’s School

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove were the River Dart Trip and the Leavers’ Trip.

Grace L

Drama Monitor

Senior School

Marlborough College

Comments

My highlights of Hazlegrove were making fun memories on the Ski Trip and the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Cooking.

Will L

Prop Monitor

Academic Scholarship

King’s School Bruton

Senior School

Sexey’s School

Comments

My special memories of Hazlegrove were spending time with friends on the Leavers’ Trip especilly on the beach.

Dorothy L

Head Girl (Spring Term)

Prefect

Drama Monitor

Senior School

Bradfield College

Comments

My highlights of Hazlegrove were surfing on the Leavers’ Trip and having lots of fun on the River Dart Trip.

My favourite club was Cooking.

Alexander L

Boarding and Drama Monitor

Academic Scholarship Dean Close School

Comments

My favourite highlights of Hazlegrove were boarders football and the River Dart Trip.

My favourite club was Football.

Wilfred M

Prefect

Prop Monitor

Academic Scholarship Wells Catherdral School

Comments

My special memory of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip especially the Surfing.

My favourite club was Football.

Daniel M

Tech Monitor

Music Exhibition and Sports Scholarship

King’s School Bruton

Comments

My highlight of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip especially coasteering, sailing and surfing.

My favourite clubs were Football, Cricket and Woodland Games.

Charles M

Sports Monitor

Sports Scholarship

King’s School Bruton

Comments

My highlights of Hazlegrove were the River Dart Trip and the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Football.

Carmen O G

Science Monitor

Senior School

Returning to Spain

Comments

My favourite memory of Hazlegrove was spending time with my friends in the tent on the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite clubs were Cooking and Rounders.

Will R

Music Monitor

Music Scholarship King’s School Bruton

Comments

My favourite highlights of Hazlegrove were the River Dart Trip and the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite clubs were Woodland Games and Football.

Georgia S

Prefect

Pre-Prep Monitor

Senior School Sherborne Girls

Comments

My favourite highlights of Hazlegrove were spending time with friends on the Leavers’ Trip and the Ski Trip. I also enjoyed all the Music Concerts.

My favourite clubs were Cricket and Woodland Games.

Nella P

Music Monitor

Drama Scholarship King’s School Bruton

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove were the Leavers’ Trip and the Year 8 Production which was so much fun.

My favourite clubs were Drama and Hazlegrove Voices.

Bertie R

Tech Monitor

Senior School

Sherborne School

Comments

My special memories of Hazlegrove were all our sports matches together with my teams and the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Drone.

Oliver R

Head Boy (Spring Term)

Prefect

Science Monitor

Senior School King’s School Bruton

Comments

My favourite memories were swimming at the IAPS National Swimming Finals in the Olympic Pool and the River Dart Trip.

My favourite club was Swimming.

Arabella P

Drama Monitor

Sports Exhibition

Sherborne Girls

Comments

My special memory of Hazlegrove was the last night on the Leavers’ Trip with all my friends on the beach.

My favourite clubs were Cricket and Athletics.

Sarah S

Drama Monitor

Art Scholarship King’s School Bruton

Comments

My highlight of Hazlegrove was getting to share a tent and try lots of challenging activities with my friends on the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Art Scholars.

Daniel S

Drama Monitor

Drama Scholarship King’s School Bruton

Comments

My favourite memory of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Drama.

Zahra S

Head Girl (Autumn Term)

Prefect

Lower School Monitor

Senior School

Marlborough College

Comments

My favourite highlights of Hazlegrove were trips on the minibus with friends and the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Woodland Games.

Harry S

Tech Monitor

Senior School

Monkton Combe

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove were tree climbing for Boarder’s Activities and the River Dart Trip.

My favourite clubs were Minecraft, Bee Keeping and Science.

Senior School

Returning to France

Comments

My highlight of Hazlegrove was surfing on the Leavers’ Trip.

Allegra V

Farm Monitor

Academic Scholarship

Sherborne Girls

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove were being with my friends at break time and the water sports on the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite club was Drama.

Charlotte W

Pre-Prep Monitor

All Rounder Award (Sport and Drama)

King’s School Bruton

Comments

My highlights of Hazlegrove were the last night of the Leavers’ Trip and the Ski Trip.

My favourite clubs were Cooking, Athletics and Woodland Games.

My favourite club was Golf. .....................................................

Samuel T

Science Monitor

Senior School

King’s School Bruton

Comments

My highlights of Hazlegrove were the Lower School Productions and the Leavers’ Trip.

Oscar W

DT Monitor

Senior School

Uppingham School

Comments

My highlight of Hazlegrove was the Leavers’ Trip. I enjoyed all the fun activities with everyone in Year 8.

My favourite club was Board Games.

Charlie W

Boarding Monitor

Academic Scholarship

King’s College Taunton

Comments

My favourite memories of Hazlegrove were winning our final match of the Rugby season and surfing on the Leavers’ Trip.

My favourite clubs were Laser Pistol and Cricket

EXTRACT TAKEN FROM ED BENBOW’S SPEECH

Our curriculum also enjoyed fresh emphasis on sustainability, through relaunching our Eco Committee, a very successful festival in the Spring Term, and numerous initiatives throughout the year, including recycling clothing, reducing our food waste and plastic usage, growing crocuses and wildflowers, and rejuvenating our gardening club. Only this week we were treated to an excellent exhibition by Year 5, as they displayed their eco-friendly inventions, including solar-powered hairdryers and paper made from elephant dung. Within our Learning Support, Becky Seery and her brilliant team have worked wonders with their pupils, and we have seen encouraging progress made within spelling and reading attainment thanks to new reading and phonics interventions.

As our senior schools continue to move their emphasis away from Common Entrance, so we continue to evolve our own assessment, whilst always maintaining a high level of academic rigour. We continue to embrace technological change, but at the same time we never underestimate the importance of human interaction, that continues to play such an invaluable part in a child’s education. It is also heartening to see many other schools, including King’s Bruton, mirror our no phones policy – we strongly subscribe to the UFO model at Hazlegrove, namely, to look Up, Forward and Out. Our 50 Year 8 leavers move on to seventeen different senior schools, namely Blundell’s, Bradfield College, Bryanston, Canford, Dean Close, King’s Bruton, King’s College Taunton, Marlborough College, Millfield, Monkton Combe, Radley College, Sexey’s School, Sherborne Girls School, Sherborne School, Stonyhurst College, Uppingham, and Wells Cathedral School. We also wish our Spanish and French leavers well as they return to their native schools.

Academic scholarships were awarded to Lizzie C-T to Stonyhurst, George B to Radley, Sofia G-R and William L to King’s Bruton, Alex L to Dean Close, Wilfred M to Wells Cathedral, Allegra V to Sherborne Girls and Charlie W to King’s College Taunton. May I take this opportunity to thank Andrew Farquhar and Angela Hughes for everything they have done this year as Academic Leads, bringing in some excellent new initiatives as well as forging stronger curriculum links with King’s Bruton.

Leavers’ Trip

By Mrs Cobb

Year 8 2024 – what a wonderful group. Our Year 8 spent a fabulous week in Cornwall - a wonderful way to mark the end of their Prep School journey. Camping at Dinham Farm near Polzeath is the perfect place to rest after fun filled busy days. The children all enjoyed some exhilarating and fun activities including surfing, sea safari’s, kayaking on the sea, coasteering, cycling the Camel Trail, bodyboarding, walking the coast path and spending time together on the beach. With lots of memories being made and relishing the final few weeks together, Year 8 were a delight to take away. On our last evening we watched the sun going down all together in a big group on the beach and emotions were high – this trip is always exhilarating and a huge amount of fun - the Leavers’ Trip 2024 was a brilliant success.

Staff News

Extract from the Headmaster’s Speech

Inevitably, at the end of an academic year, we must say goodbye to some much revered members of the Common Room.

FAREWELLS:

Katie Proctor

Joined us in April 2023 as a Drama Teacher. She has brought a huge amount to the Drama and English departments over the past year, whilst also completing her PGCE and, as already mentioned, playing a key role in our school productions. Katie moves on to Wells Cathedral School, where she will be Graduate Drama Assistant and Assistant Houseparent.

Adriane Mahoney

Also joined us in April 2023, and has done a superb job as a General Subjects Teacher and Year 6 form tutor this year. She moves on to an exciting new role at Hambling View School, a brand-new SEN school in Bath.

Zoe Dale

Joined us 8 years ago as a French teacher, and has been an integral part of the department, making a particular impact on our younger pupils, including Pre-Prep. She moves on to become a 1:1 SEN Teaching Assistant at King Ina Academy in Somerton.

We also wish our Year 4 maternity teacher Helen Lea, and LSU teacher Benice Butcher-Nardiello all the very best for the upcoming births of their children over the coming months.

Services and Events

at Sherborne

Wells Cathedral Carol Service

Olympic Morning with Countess Gytha School

EcoFest

By Mrs Benbow

This year our Festival week focussed on all things environmental. Children and staff engaged in a whole range of different activities, talks and projects looking at local and global environmental issues, particularly focussing on sustainability and making Hazlegrove a more eco conscious and green school. We were treated to an amazing and inventive array of cakes and bakes for the ‘It’s Only Natural’ competition and judging was particularly tricky this year! Pupils from Nursery to Year 8 were involved in a range of different upcycling and recycling projects with the Recycled Fashion Show being a particular highlight of the week. Some of the pupils created plans to help realise Mr Benbow’s dream for a solar field, others rode bicycles to power blenders and make smoothies and a lucky few made solar powered cars. We were treated to a lesson on the sustainability of wool, watched the crafts of sheep shearing and woodturning, and enjoyed enthusiastic workshops and talks from the Young People’s Trust for the Environment, Carymoor, Octavius Engineering and Green up your Act. We planted wild flower beds, re-wilded areas of the school grounds, put up nature cameras and looked at the wildlife and insect life in our school grounds.

The School became a hive of activity throughout the week and our drive during the festival was to make Hazlegrove a more sustainable and Eco-active school. Thank you to everyone involved and to those who were motivted to keep their inner Eco-warrior motivated to help Hazlegrove sustain a more environmentally friendly future.

Boarding at Hazlegrove

By Mr Forbes - Head of Boarding

Fun, fun and more fun! This certainly sums up what Hazlegrove boarding is all about. This past year has been like a whirlwind, boarding life certainly is fast paced, we all get so engrossed in it that we don’t realise how quickly the terms pass us by.

It is a great honour and privilege to look after your children. We as staff find them remarkably resilient, kind and caring. Being away from their parents, and for some of them boarding for the first time, is incredibly difficult, yet they wake up with a smile and try their best in everything they do. As with all of us, there are good days and bad days but we are very fortunate with the kind, caring and empathetic staff we have here at Hazlegrove. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank them for the tireless commitment and love they show to the boarders. The boarding community has enjoyed having so many young children in and around it. The safe arrival of Jonty Froggatt and Jacob Birch were real highlights for us all. Mr and Mrs Atkinson being more involved with the junior boys allowed us to see a lot more of Mabel and Henry. This family feel and community is really what Hazlegrove boarding is all about. I am really looking forward to September when the Atkinsons take the reins of Lankester and become fulltime house parents for the junior boys.

The girls have loved the new look in Blackford: their new entrance, refurbished common room and, of course, the Year 8 girls have been delighted to have their own space and to chill out in their newly decorated senior girls’ common room. Blackford has also seen some of the dorms refurbished with new pinboards, carpets and a fresh lick of paint. Thank you to the Friends for donating the lovely decorative pots on the wall at the entrance, it really has brightened up that area. Trips and activities this year have been fun, frenetic and not for the faint hearted. We have ventured off to Wookey Hole, Splashdown, Dorset Water Park, Ten Pin Bowling and Weymouth beach to name a few. Lots of active onsite activities like tree climbing, inflatables and Zorb balling have been enjoyed by all. We are so fortunate to have such lovely spacious grounds where children can be children and do things like bike riding, den building or go-karting. It has been so refreshing seeing the children playing, talking and enjoying each other’s company in our unplugged environment.

Our stand out events of the year being the Christmas Feast, Scottish Reeling, Christmas Caroling, Burns Night, Easter Feast and Boogie on the Bastion are always special memories, especially for the Year 8 leavers. The opportunity to do something different and create shared experiences is invaluable and really brings the best out of the boarders.

I’d like to thank you, as parents, for being so supportive of the boarding community and the ethos and culture of Hazlegrove. It has been wonderful meeting so many of you over the year and the boarding families picnic was a real highlight for us. Boarding numbers are strong and a lot of that is due to the positive word of mouth you have created within the community. For those pupils leaving, take the school values that have been instilled in you at Hazlegrove and these will stand you in good stead for the future. For those boarders returning, enjoy your summer holidays, recharge those batteries and come back ready and raring to go for another action packed year at Hazlegrove.

Trip to Ham Hill

Inflatables Fun

Go-Karting

A Trip to the Seaside Abseiling Christmas Feast Easter

Ice Cream Van Visit Den Building

A Dip in the Pool Ham Hill Walk

Dorset Waterpark

Weymouth Beach

Relaxing on the Lawn Abseiling Jurassic Coast Bouncy Castle

Air Hop Time With Friends Coastal Walk Laser Tag

Time with Friends Football Table

Christmas at the Garden Centre Flip Out Coastal Path

Pre-Prep at Hazlegrove

By Miss Strugnell

The glorious late summer sun welcomed us back to school to commence the new year in September. Apple Day is a very special day for us, celebrating the old traditional Somerset day, and immersing ourselves in apple activities. The children brought in their own apples from home and we were amazed by the number of different apple varieties, colours and sizes there were! The children rolled, weighed, painted and, most deliciously, ate apples to celebrate!

Play Time

Charity Cycle Event

Heading Out for Games

Sports Day

Nursery Prize Giving

Play Time

Owl Visit

Guy Building Bonfire Night

Apple Day

Pre-Prep Nativity

Swimming Lesson

Harvest Festival

Pre-Prep Concert

Christmas Lunch

Year 2 Trip to St Barnabas Church

Goat Visit

Nursery Make Bird Feeders

Year 2 Make Snow Globes

Year 1 Gingerbread

Forest School

Festive Friday

Christmas Fayre

Nursery Visit to the Newt Nursery Nativity

Mr Stok Visit

Dentist Visit

Nursery Welly Walk

Year 2 WW2 Letters

The Pre-Prep children were all stars of the show over the Autumn term; performing with courage, resilience and pride in our whole-school Harvest Festival, our Nursery and Pre-Prep nativities and Pre-Prep concerts.

We concluded the term with our Festive Friday where all children from Nursery to Year 2, took part in our sponsored Rudolph Run, completing laps of the sports fields all in aid of Save the Children. We got that festive feeling during the day, taking part in lots of Christmas activities and even having a visit from Father Christmas and his cheeky elf Squeak! At the end of the day, we all enjoyed visiting the Pre-Prep Christmas Fayre where we could chance our luck on the tombola, hook a duck, have our face painted and enjoy tasty Christmas treats. Whilst we had lots of fun on Festive Friday, we also raised a very impressive £707.35 for Save the Children.

Eggstravaganza Day EcoFest

Pre-Prep Concert

Inter House Singing Competition

Nursery Forest School

Ambulance Visit

Snow Day

Ambulance Visit

World Book Day

International Languages Day

Nursery Recycling

Year 2 Mouse House Forest School

Year 2 Mr Stok Visit

Rural Life Museum

Reception Secret Phonics

Nursery PE

Year 1 Explore Space

Burns Night Forest School

Pre-Prep

We started the term with a spring in our step; pleased to be reunited with our friends after the Christmas break and looking forward to all the forthcoming events. Our sponsored cycle in aid of Safari Simbaz was a huge success! All of our Pre-Prep children donned their cycle helmets and scooted and cycled to raise money, navigating their way around our obstacle course and along the challenging dirt track through the woods. Their efforts raised a staggering £677 to support children in Kenya.

World Book Day is always a firm favourite in the Pre-Prep and, this year, the children displayed great imagination and creativity in their costumes, being inspired by a range of authors and stories, including some old favourites. For all this fun, we raised £80 for the Literacy Trust, helping all children to have the opportunity to enjoy and escape into stories.

Our Eggstravaganza was egg-cellent fun! Every class decorated eggs within a theme and we had farm animals, chicks, inspirational figures and under the sea creatures! Mr Benbow was so impressed with everyone’s creativity and imagination, and was tasked with the impossible job of selecting two winning eggs from each year group! We had spiders, sheep, dragons, and more - well done Pre-Prep!

Our Pre-Prep Ballet dancers performed beautifully and with great confidence in their Ballet Showcase! It was a wonderful display of the techniques they have learned and the progression in skills from Reception, as well as their concentration, courage and resilience, that they all developed ready for their Royal Ballet School exams later in the term!

Year 1 Review

Reception Sports Day Year 2 Review

Year 1 and 2 Sports Day

Charity Cycle Event

Ballet Showcase

Nursery Sports Day

Sheep Visit

Pre-Prep Concert

Nursery Prizegiving

Nursery Recycling

Playtime

Habitats Year 2

Nursery Visit to the Sword in the Stone Forest School

Pre-Prep

We blasted off to Space with Year 1 and joined Year 2 at the seaside for their Reviews in the Theatre to an audience of familiar faces. The progress in the children’s performances was evident as they commanded the stage; singing, dancing and reciting poetry with expression, clarity and huge smiles!

We had four Sports Days this year in Pre-Prep, with children from as young as two years of age taking part in sporting activities they had acquired over the year. It was a wonderful opportunity to see the progression in skills and physical development throughout the years, with our oldest children challenging themselves to the long jump, 300m running race and even the hurdles on our athletics track. Well done to everyone for the determination, encouragement and grace observed.

To conclude the year, we celebrated all of the children’s achievements across the PrePrep. Mr Benbow awarded our Nursery children with their prizes, including awards for marvellous Maths, being strong and balanced in PE and being kind to others. Later in the week, we welcomed Mr Evans, our Pre-Prep Governor, and our Reception, Year 1 and 2 families into the marquee in front of the main house for our second Prize Giving event. The children were awarded prizes for a range of subject areas as well as endeavour and progress being recognised. The Dolphin Choir gave Year 2 a taste of Lower School life and inspired our children for when they enter the Prep school.

Over the year, we have thoroughly enjoyed welcoming many visitors; helping us to learn about the world around us, the past and people who help us, as well as some rather fabulous furry friends. Derek the pony enjoyed being groomed and ridden by Reception, and Winston the barn owl and his friends taught Year 1 about ‘Light and Dark’. Thank you to all our families who gave up their time to visit us with their pets or to tell us about their jobs, inspiring us for the future.

We look back with fondness and pride at all that has been achieved this year, and look forward to continuing our Pre-Prep journey next year!

Lower School

YEAR 3

Cookout

“It is so much fun using the stove with a real flame underneath. I hope that my beans don’t stick to the bottom.”

Solly R

“I loved singing the juicy moose song and playing campfire games around the fire pit. I really wanted to keep going for hours!”

Théa G

Roman History Day

I saw the Roman Goddess called Vita on the wall in the Roman Villa. It shows life and beauty. The lady who talked to really made the Villa come alive. Vita H

Seeing a real Roman Villa was incredible and I could even work out the different rooms. I didn’t realise how clever the Romans were and how much they changed our lives.

Henry H

Corfe Castle

“I think that being the poor boy who cleans the toilet with a stick should have been paid lots of gold coins. It is terrible that this was allowed even if they did earn money for their families”

Freddie M

“I would love to be a knight with a sword. I would have a trusty horse that would take me everywhere and never be afraid of the enemy!”

Caspian E

“People would have been very frightened of the King and Queen. The castle is very bold and scary, and this helped the King and Queen get all the money and taxes they could ever want. I am glad things are not like that now.”

Ava B

Montacute House

“I really thought that the Pudding Houses were used for guests to pray in. I was shocked to imagine having a building just for eating delicious desserts!” Atti M

Rory

East Somerset Railway

“It was cool, we got to ride a steam train and a mini train” Harry A

“I liked experiencing being an evacuee and discovering a little about what it was like.” Noah Z

“Understanding how the steam train worked was so much fun, we learnt lots.” Freddie W

Ufton Court

“Ufton Court was really interesting, we found out so much about Sir Francis Drake.” Neve C

“It was really fun pretending to explore and discover new things around the grounds, we even did some looting and destroyed a Spanish ship!” Eve B

‘It was a fantastic sight to see the big Tudor building.” Arthur C

Lower School

YEAR 4

Year 4 Camp Out

“It was exciting to sleep out in a tent, over night, at school, with your friends.” Theo H

“It was really cool to hear about the Vinder Viper and other camping stories.” Jemima P

“It was an incredible experience, running around in the dark, playing games and cooking our own food.” Edward B

Lower School

Miss Rudd

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Camelot…

Camelot provided the setting for this year’s rib-tickling Lower School production, complete with bold knights, fair maidens, evil witches and warlocks, a disgruntled waitress, a good dash of magic from Merlin and enchanted trees stealing the limelight - even the Chuckle Brother’s had a comeback cameo! It was great to see the energy and enthusiasm which the pupils gave at all stages of the production as they retold the legend of ‘The Sword in the Stone’. Thankfully, Arthur and Merlin did manage to foil Morgana’s evil plot with the help of a team of trusty knights and a very enthusiastic audience; Amazon delivered the Round Table at the perfect time too! The children really pulled together, encouraging each other to go for it! This was certainly reflected in the confidence levels of the children and their clear enjoyment of the performance on stage. They sang, danced and acted their hearts out to much laughter and applause. Their volume and vigour raised the roof and no doubt many of the heartwarming tunes will be ear worms for some time. Both performances couldn’t but fail to lift the spirits of those present!

Lower School

Out and About

Year 5 - Naturesbase

By Mr Jenkins

A trip to Naturesbase, close to Cardigan Bay in Wales is always a fantastic way to begin the new year together for the Year 5s and this year was no exception. In short but action-packed days we managed to do a huge range of things, including team-building challenges, night-time orienteering by torch-light, fire lighting with flint and steel, den building and a hands on outdoor history lesson which covered Wales from the stone age to Victorian times. Throw in some foraging in hedge-rows for food, (yes, you can eat nettles!) a quiz, and a 6 mile walk to the coast including a visit to a Victorian estate and an organic farm and it’s no surprise that this trip is one of the best residentials offered at Hazlegrove. The children and teachers always return rather tired, but having had some wonderful experiences and having built some great foundations in their relationships with each other. A great way to start life in the Middle School!

Out and About Year 6 French Trip

By Mrs Richards

What a wonderful time we had in France, with the lovely Year 6, who are full of energy and eager to learn. We left at the crack of dawn and headed to Normandy on Brittany Ferries. Upon arrival, we were met by our animateurs and quickly settled in to La Grand’ Ferme, with a swim in the beautiful outdoor pool and a game of volleyball followed by a delicious supper. The animateurs led the children through each mealtime, inviting the children to ask for “encore du pain et de l’eau” as well as clearing and helping each other serving food. All of the activities at the gite, from the treasure hunt, to aeroballe, from breadmaking, to boules were delivered in French and by the end of the week, the children were translating and chorusing their replies.

The excursions were a huge success. Each day, we travelled by coach to a new destination, accompanied by the animateurs. We visited Avranches for a town trail, a local market for our picnic buying mission, a goat farm and a local school to meet our prospective penpals. A highlight for many was the hotly anticipated tour of Mont St Michel, standing in all its glory under a bright blue sky. The children had lots of fun and can be so proud of their many achievements, whether it was buying six apples from a market stall by themselves, meeting a new French friend, greeting French locals in the town, winning the tidiest dorm competition, trying a snail or even some fresh goat’s milk.

Thank you to all the teachers who came with us on the trip, France 2024, and to our wonderful Year 6 with their boundless enthusiasm!

Out and About Exmoor Challenge

By Mr Birch

On the Saturday of the May Exeat weekend, sixteen of our intrepid Year 7 pupils headed up to Dulverton to take part in this year’s Exmoor Challenge. The task of walking for 16 miles unaccompanied by an adult, having to navigate across the moor and hit seven checkpoints at specific times is no mean feat, and certainly very ‘challenging’ as the name suggests. It was a scorching day and we could not have asked for better conditions up on the moor.

It was fantastic to see incredible teamwork and determination to do well from all who took part. Well done to our boys team especially, who managed to complete the course and came in13th place, in a field of 27. The other three teams did well and managed to get the majority of the way around the course, only to then team up and take a slightly alternative route for the final leg! All arrived safely back at the finish line and enjoyed tucking into their well deserved rations.

It was fantastic to see the smiling (and very tired!) faces of all involved at the end of the day, and we are so proud of all their hard work. It is also wonderful that two members of the Exmoor Rotary Club made a point of commenting on our teams and how they were spotted picking up other people’s litter as they walked. A huge thanks to all staff involved and well done Hazlegrove!

Out and About

Year 7 - River Dart

By Mrs Cobb

What a fantastic trip with our wonderful Year 7. Fun, togetherness, teamwork and challenge were the themes of the week and they certainly embraced this.

Watching individuals visibly flourish and the year group pulling together as a unit is something very special and everyone will have special memories to cherish for many years to come. From quite literally flying around on the high ropes course in the tree canopy, kayaking in a gorgeous lake, to the amazing experience of caving, deep underground, Year 7 managed to cram so much into the week. Looking back through the photos, you get a taste of the magic of this trip; being outdoors on the inspiring Dartmoor, pushing yourself and discovering your strengths and weaknesses as well as showing empathy and supporting friends is a key life skill and this year group displayed this in abundance. They can all be very proud of their achievements, and I can still hear the shrieks and squeals of excitement that were very evident throughout the week. What a brilliant group of Hazlegrove children.

Ecology of School Grounds

Tension

Acids and Alkalis

Working with Bunsen Burners

Heart Dissection

Testing Party Poppers

Life Cycle Poster

Flower Dissection

Heart Dissection

Boiling Points

Habitats

Christmas Chromatography Chemical Reactions

Habitats

Litmus Test

Flower Disection

Academic Year Science

By Mrs Wells-Burr - Head of Science

What an absolute pleasure it has been to join the Hazlegrove community. My first year as Head of Department has been thoroughly enjoyable due to the exceptional support and knowledge of Mr Atkinson and Mr Head, and the endless enthusiasm of the pupils. It has been an exciting year for the Department, utilising the fantastic laboratories and outdoor spaces, providing opportunities for students to explore areas of interest, and sparking curiosity in every child.

Highlights of the year would include Year 7 and 8 creating exceptional posters presenting the research they carried out during Eco-Fest under the title ‘We Are Running Out of Time!’ Heartbreaking statistics and accounts of endangered animals made for difficult reading, with the top 5 posters being entered into the British Science Week Poster Competition.

Year 1 and Year 5 were treated to an afternoon in a Space Dome in which they explored the solar system, visited the international space station, and were able to visualise all they had learnt during their lessons. Exploration has been a key theme of this year, and students have been encouraged to explore areas of interest, delve deeper and think critically.

We endeavour to include as many experiments as possible in our lessons, with pupils having the opportunity to use microscopes, Bunsen burners, data loggers and sampling equipment. Year 7 thoroughly enjoyed their science morning, with many of them having their first experience of dissecting hearts! Year 6 also evidenced a thorough understanding of acids and alkalis by creating a rainbow of colours using universal indicator.

In our ever-changing world it has never been more important to inspire the next generation and ensure they have a solid understanding of the world around them. Years 6 and 7 were lucky enough to receive a talk from award-winning author and science communicator Sophie Pavelle, opening their eyes to the wide variety of jobs and professions within the science world. Who knows, maybe in the future we will see an old Hazlegrovian presenting science documentaries, solving issues relating to global warming, or helping us travel to Mars!

Out and About on a Maths Investigation

Middle School Maths Morning

Lower School Maths Morning

Year 3 Maths Lesson Year 7 Learning About Metric Units

Year 4 Make A Times City

Middle School Maths Morning

Year 8 Maths Lesson

Middle School Maths Morning

Year 4 Times City

Middle School Maths Morning

Year 3 Maths Lesson

Thinking Outside the Box Christmas Themed Project

Middle School Maths Morning Year 4

Academic Year Maths

By Mr Shaw - Head of Maths

Paul Halmos once stated, “The only way to learn mathematics is to do mathematics”… never was a truer word spoken. As yet another extremely busy, rewarding, challenging, productive and fun year of maths comes to end at Hazlegrove it is a real delight to reflect back over the last twelve months and consider just how much our eager and hardworking young mathematicians have achieved.

The Middle and Lower School maths activity mornings are always a highlight of the year; as the children spend the whole morning racing between five very different maths stations that are set up around the school; putting all the mathematical skills they have been learning in their lessons into practice as they tackle (in small groups) a wide variety of practical maths puzzles and problems. Every time we run these (slightly chaotic) events we are reminded just how important it is for the children to constantly be developing their problem-solving abilities, whilst also being reminded of the vital role maths plays in real-world.

We entered five major national maths competitions this year, the First Maths Challenge (Years 3 and 4), the Primary Maths Challenge (Years 4, 5 and 6), the Junior Maths Challenge (Years 6, 7 and 8), the Junior Maths Kangaroo (our top five students in Years 7 and 8), and the Junior Maths Olympiad (our top Year 8 student). In each competition, once again, the children really distinguished themselves, earning an amazing number of bronze, silver and gold certificates, with the top students qualifying for the follow-up rounds. We also took 13 of our Year 8 mathematicians across to King’s Bruton in the Summer term to join some eager Year 9 mathematicians in an adapted version of the UKMT Team Maths Challenge.

Towards the end of the Autumn term all the children (Years 3 to 8) spent a week planning and designing a fabulous Christmas Fair, to be hosted in their hometown, as part of our annual Thinking Outside the Box project week, which all of the children seemed to really enjoy. These open-ended longer maths projects often challenge the children in a number of new ways, and I am always impressed by the incredible variety of imaginative ideas and designs that they come up with.

We were also fortunate enough to be able to host a number of children from Countess Gytha, a superb school based in Queen Camel, who joined our Year 5s to form ten mixed teams, comprising of pupils from both schools, for a wild maths treasure hunt that saw them running backwards and forwards across the whole estate trying to solving a series of fun maths puzzles.

Once again our hard working Year 8s rose superbly to the challenge in their final exams, earning some really excellent final grades either in their Common Entrance exams or their maths scholarship papers. I am very aware that some of the children at Hazlegrove find maths extremely tricky, and they often have to work twice as hard as their classmates to master each new topic. However, every day I am enormously encouraged when I see just how determined they are to do their very best and their eagerness to learn quickly from their mistakes. Although it is a real thrill to see an able mathematician making great strides forward in each lesson, what is often the most rewarding aspect of a maths teacher’s job does not relate to the ‘high-fliers’, but instead to the time spent encouraging and supporting those students who find maths a little harder. As long as they have done their best the final destination does not matter, what matters is that they have not given up, and in the end they can see, and be proud of, all the amazing things that they have achieved.

Another incredible year everyone – thank you. Mr Shaw

Academic Year

English - Poetry and Creative Writing

The English Department continues to go from strength to strength. Reading remains as central as ever, with 240 million words read over the year and 7500 quizzes taken.

Upper School:

We’re thrilled with the contribution English made to a very successful year for our Year 8 scholars, eight academic scholarships being awarded in all, and the quality of their speeches, presented without notes, as part of their post-scholarship programme, was a wonderful reminder of how much they have progressed during their time here. Year 7 have had a roller coaster of a year, from the fantastical stories in ‘Grimm Tales’, to witches, potions and tragedy in Shakespeare’s world, ending with ‘Refugee Boy’ and the thought-provoking reality of life as an asylum seeker. Year 8 enjoyed the spine-chilling ghost story by Susan Hill, ‘The Woman in Black’ and a trip to the theatre in Bristol was a highlight last term. After that, it was full steam ahead with CE preparation and the children certainly did themselves proud during exam week.

Middle School:

This academic year has been a whirlwind of creativity and learning for Year 5 and the journey began with an immersive exploration of World War I, where work included passionate letters, persuasive speeches and poignant poems. A highlight was a fantastic trip to Bovington Tank Museum and the children presented their work beautifully in homemade scrapbooks. In the second term, the focus shifted to the Titanic and Michael Morpurgo’s Kaspar Prince of Cats as the class book. Descriptions, poems and newspaper articles ensued with a fierce debate about who was to blame for the disaster – a real courtroom drama!

The year culminated with an ‘Inventors’ topic, with a spotlight on William Kamkwamba, a teenager who built a windmill to power his village in Malawi. Many inventors were studied and the children had enormous fun producing a spectacular museum exhibition, showcasing eco-friendly inventions.

This year, Year 6 embarked on a literary adventure inspired by Phileas Fogg’s journey in “Around the World in 80 Days”. They travelled through time and space, describing Egyptian tombs, crafting non-linear chase stories in Indonesia, writing persuasively about Normandy, accompanying Shackleton on his voyage, and writing and delivering spoken word poetry based on Amanda Gorman’s “The Hill We Climb.” In Term 2, the focus shifted to crime and mystery, where the children presented well-known mysteries to their peers, studied “The Highwayman” poem and finally wrote their own thrilling mystery stories.

The final term was dedicated to “Kensuke’s Kingdom” and work included persuasive writing about sailing around the world, hyperbole poems about the horrendous dangers at sea, designing their own islands and constructing top-notch survival guides. What a fantastic year of creativity and exploration!

Lower School:

Postcards from the Summer re-telling times of fun filled and relaxing holidays kick started the term before the children got stuck into exploring traditional tales. A dash of drama set them off before the children were challenged to write their own versions of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, to be shared with Year 2; titles like ‘Goldy and the Three Dinosaurs’ and ‘Sharky and the Three Seals’ were enjoyed by the younger pupils – much giggling was to be heard from the book nook! Roman inspired reports finished the Autumn term. Myths and Legends were the focus for the Spring term. The children enjoyed finding out about local myths and legends at Somerset Rural Life Museum which linked to writing opportunities back at school - Did you know Hunky Punks are only to be found in Somerset? Robin Hood provided much amusement for all to end the term.

Thoughtful Global Citizenship poems were crafted at the start of the Summer term before Year 3 enjoyed the humour of Fantastic Mr Fox which helped to develop their understanding of play scripts and the Storey Treehouse series, which sparked a range of persuasive writing tasks. For Year 4, thankfully, the dragons returned to Hazlegrove woods in September which provided the spark of imagination for a whole range of creative writing opportunities in the Autumn term, from traditional stories and descriptive poems to non-chronological reports – look out for the Queen Camel Quizzler flying over a road near you! Writing inspired by the moving book, ‘Street Child’ by Berlie Doherty, was the focus for the Spring term; convincing arguments about the workhouse were crafted. Ancient Egypt fever took over in the Summer – have you ever tried mummifying a tomato? Year 4 pupils at Hazlegrove have, and they developed their instruction writing techniques whilst they were at it! Inspired by our D-Day commemorations, Year 4 wrote newspaper articles which linked to their end of Summer WWII history topic to finish a very busy and exciting Year in English. It has been wonderful to see all the children across the Lower School approach their English with such enthusiasm and imagination throughout the year.

THE WORLD

The world should be a place of love and respect; it should be full of kindness, equality and happiness. I think the world should be full of courage and grace. Everywhere should have fairness, peace and integrity.

WHY?

Why can’t everyone have clean water and good food?

Why can’t everyone have a home and a warm bed?

We should all be RAGING if someone is treated unfairly because they look different.

BE RESPECTFUL!

We should all treat people fairly and we all need to help the world.

Globally, we should stop littering and help all of the animals.

Flight of the Hunky Punk – Lottie C 3R

Captain’s Log - Rollo V 5T

It’s tragedy. We are stuck in this isolated, desolate, barren wasteland, it’s just a generally useless place, and to make it worse, my heart is broken; snapped in two. My beautiful, graceful swan of a ship has met an icy grave. I bet, if I escape from this hellhole, in 40 years even, it will still haunt me. It was pulverized, dragged into those bottomless depths. We are stranded. We are stuck in a fatal game of cat and mouse between us and Antarctica. And we cannot win.

The months before were desperate, and I have a dreading hunch that the future will be even more so. My men are desperate as well, now that we are vessel-less. The lads feel depressed, deprived, and as I walk through the campsite at night thinking about my options, I hear mutterings among my crew, a “My only love” here and a “Oh my beautiful children” there. It’s horrific and beautiful at the same time. I’m out of my depth with rationing; it’s simple, we haven’t got enough food. It may seem silly but it’s a last-ditch effort, since some men have frostbite so we could eat their fingers and toes.

I felt my hunky punk’s muscles tense as she gathered her strength beneath me. As I took off from my cosy, warm house, I held my breath, and I felt a feeling of excitement; I thought I had butterflies in my tummy. Higher and higher we flew, faster and faster we soared through the marshmallow like clouds. Just then I saw water crashing down into the murky depths below us. It was a waterfall, plummeting down near the foamy water, tumbling into the dark brown river whose winding path cut into the landscape. I followed the river all along its twisting journey. Finally, it reached the open ocean. As my hunky punk glided down, it dragged its leather like wings across the rippling water, playfully splashing my face; the salt stung my lips. The beautiful crystal blue ocean shimmered like stars in the sky. We continued on and moved through the air like a swirling snowflake drifting through the air as it started to rain. The sea turned turquoise as I reached an island in the middle of the light blue sea. It looked lonely to me, it looked like it needed a friend. Confidently, I flew down to the tropical island and landed joyfully. I tasted some of the tropical fruit and played with my hunky punk happily. As we played, I began to wonder where our next adventure would take us to…

Bang Boom Sizzle – Amelia G 5T

The venomous volcano is a Smokey Volcano that gives off toxic fumes. Its lava is as hot as the sun and it explodes once a year! If you even try to climb up the volcano, you will be covered head to toe in black, sticky, gooey stuff that is as thick as petrol. The only way to access the top of the volcano is by climbing up a rotting rope ladder. It has knots threatening to untie at any second, its rope is disintegrating by the second. If you do manage to get up to the top of the volcano you will smell the most revolting odour you have ever smelt in your entire life! The toxic fumes are silent assassin’s waiting to instantly kill you if you even try to breathe them in! The shadow of the volcano looms over you, as the volcano stands tall and proud.

Library

By Mrs Keeping - Librarian

Hazlegrove is passionate about instilling a love for reading in our children. Reading is embedded in our everyday routine. To help us achieve this aim we run a programme in the school called the Accelerated Reading scheme. This enables us to closely monitor the children’s reading progress. The library is the ‘jewel’ in our crown; it is a place where children can catch up on current affairs, browse a huge range of books and lose themselves in stories. We hope that every child who finishes their time at Hazlegrove will leave with a genuine love for reading.

In the Autumn term we ran our usual ‘Millionaires’ challenge and had 50 pupils achieve the millionaire status. This involves reading a million words during the term. Congratulations to Indigo E in Year 6 who read over 3 million words and to Lily R, Charlie P and Sacha C who read over 2 million words this term. They all attended a fabulous lunch.

During the Spring term we created a new competition called ‘Chocolate Reading Challenge’. Classes were competing with each other to work their way through the process of making chocolate from the cacoa pods all the way through until the final stage of being the ultimate ‘chocolate’. The prize, of course, for the winning class a gorgeous chocolate cake. This was devoured by 7S who read a whopping 12 million words between them. However, closely behind was 6M who had to settle for the chocolate cup cakes.

During the Summer term the children competed in another new challenge called The Olympic House Challenge. All four houses were competing to race up the Eiffel Tower to showcase the Summer Olympics. Results: Bronze = Norton Silver = Dover Gold = Tremlett Our highest readers in Norton : Edward B, Dover: Nathanael C and Tremlett: Noah R each received a Bronze, Silver and Gold medal.

Over the year the children have read 240 million words and taken 7500 quizzes. A special mention to Lily R in Year 7 who has read over 7 million words and is our top reader of the year.

It has been another fantastic year of reading for pleasure.

Academic Year Geography

By Mr Farquhar - Head of Geography

2024 was an important year for the Geography department: it was the first year that our Year 8s completed our new humanities curriculum, with projects and internal assessments being used to measure progress instead of Common Entrance examinations. We’re simply thrilled with how much pupils have enjoyed their extended projects, putting lots and lots and lots of time into completing them.

This has included Year 7s having to minimise the disruption and market the benefits of living and farming near Mount Etna, designing a sustainable settlement that meets the needs of twenty-first century living and teaching Year 2s, 3s, 4s and 5s about plate tectonics. To say pupils have risen to the challenge of working well together as a team, putting things across clearly for younger pupils, making clear, simple, child-friendly resources, making their designs eye-catching and thorough, and researching carefully to ensure their work is up-to-date and accurate, is an understatement! Year 8 have then all produced a thorough fieldwork writeup, based on their trip to Lulworth Cove in September, and have had various assessments during the year, testing their knowledge and understanding of rivers and coasts, transport and industry, weather and climate, location knowledge and Ordnance Survey map skills. We have covered all the Common Entrance (CE) syllabus in full and all questions on the assessments have been from past CE papers, but the move to sitting Geography assessments at different times of year to when CE practice exams, mocks and CE itself take place has helped spread the revision load more evenly across the year for our Year 8s, allowing them to focus on fewer things at once!

It’s been a real success and we’re so glad to have held on to all the rigour, whilst promoting more creativity and making revision more manageable. We’ve also been delighted with how successful our scholars have been this year, in Year 8, and the significant contribution Geography has made to seven of the academic scholarships awarded. Lower down in the School, there has been less change but lots of wonderful teaching and learning. When Mr Benbow tells the School about “Show HMs” on a Friday morning in assembly, pupils’ work, which teachers have flagged as being outstanding, is often from geography lessons or prep, and it’s clear that they are engaging with the curriculum well, learning lots, and wanting to push themselves. A very encouraging year!

Academic Year History

By Miss Gilllow - Head of History

This year, Hazlegrove pupils have benefited from a wide variety of insights into aspects of the past with which they are unfamiliar. Broadening awareness and understanding of the past are key ways in which to build wisdom, empathy and awareness of the world around us, and Hazlegrove’s History department has focused on encouraging the link between what we learn in the classroom and how that connects with the world. To that end, our pupils will have a broad and relevant knowledge, which looks forward as a result of the ability to knowledgeably look back.

Mr Stok has, once again, brought his hands-on experience and experiences to school, and the opportunities to engage with an historical period have been invaluable. Inspiring children about the past and the experiences of those who have come before, and giving them opportunities to interact and ask questions, are key to our approach. Middle School’s much valued trip to the Bovington Tank Museum once again gave us brilliant opportunities to explore their World War One focus, as well as an in-school talk on minority involvement in World War One, and there were artefacts galore in the Upper School, with hands-on experience using antique sewing machines when studying the textiles industry throughout the Industrial Revolution and beyond. The whole school delved deeper into the D-Day commemorations, and Upper School were lucky enough to have an in-depth study, complete with World War Two jeep.

Our hope is that curiosity about the world around them guides and inspires our pupils throughout their lives, and they have had a great start at Hazlegrove.

Academic Year RE

By Mrs Hughes - Head of RE

Alongside our usual trips, visits and debates, this year has seen the introduction of ‘Big Brain Questions’ in our weekly celebration assemblies, where pupils have been encouraged to stretch their philosophical muscles. Exploration of questions such as ‘What makes something beautiful?’ have sparked fascinating, reflective and perceptive thoughts, suggestions, conclusions and further questions, proving that Hazlegrove minds are alive with potential, thirsty for wisdom and keen to explore new concepts. I was particularly delighted to hear conversations at lunchtime, including questions about AI and ethical issues – I particularly enjoyed listening to a group of Year 8 pupils discussing whether we might all be pawns in someone’s grand plan, and, if so, which teacher was the most likely to be running the school…

We look forward to continuing our philosophical journey next year!

Academic Year

EAL

By Mrs Wood

The EAL department has been home to 14 dedicated pupils from Spain and China, all working hard to improve their English skills. Through a combination of structured lessons, interactive activities, and personalized support, our pupils have demonstrated remarkable effort and determination. Their commitment to mastering a new language highlights the vibrant and diverse learning environment within the Department. The pupils have hosted a traditional tea party for various members of staff; they wrote invitations and thank you letters to all involved. The pupils have shown tremendous courage by standing up and presenting in two assemblies, demonstrating their commitment to improving their English skills; they promoted a charity initiative which saw the school collect old clothes to stop them going in to landfills and raised £64. Finally, towards the end of the year the pupils made games from their countries and then played them with the Y2 pupils which was such an enjoyable experience for everyone.

A summary of the work of a department is never complete without a few thoughts from the pupils themselves about what they enjoyed most!

James - playing games, learning new vocabulary and improving my reading and writing.

Jason – the board games and the way Mrs Wood taught us.

Victoria – doing the assemblies; doing the tea party with Mrs Wood and having hot chocolate with Mrs Schreiber.

Gabi – hot chocolate and the adventure playground

Fransisco – hot chocolate and doing assembly to Pre-Prep

Adriana – having fun in lessons and missing normal lessons!

Victoire- I’ve learnt lots of vocabulary with EAL and it made me feel part of a community.

Carmen – EAL has helped me understand jokes and idioms.

Oscar – EAL helped me a lot at the start of the year because my English was not so good. It also helped me to make friends.

Manu - I enjoyed the tea party with all the EAL pupils and the teachers we invited.

Laura – I liked EAL because it is a way of learning English and having fun with your friends.

Casilda – EAL was really fun and really helped my English.

Thomas – the tea party was fun and the EAL pupils all got together which was nice!

Academic Year Languages

By Mrs Richards - Head of Languages

I am delighted to say that Languages are thriving at Hazlegrove and I feel very lucky to have a fantastic team of teachers, who encourage and inspire the children every day. We have welcomed Mrs Garland into the Department, as our Latin teacher and we sadly say goodbye to Mrs Dale, one of our French specialists. We are so thankful for everything Mrs Dale has brought to the Department over the years and wish her all the best for her future.

We are forever reflecting on ways to enhance the curriculum and this year was no exception. In addition to French, the introduction of Spanish as a taster course for Year 8 has been a huge success and Latin continues to flourish, with a good uptake at Year 6 and renewed status on the timetable for the CE course through Years 7 and 8. As our primary foreign language, we concentrate on proficiency in French throughout the School; from Year 1 with an emphasis on phonics, storytelling and song, right through to our Dynamo course in the Middle and Upper School and onto the rigour of CE and scholarship.

Extra-curricular activities are so important for increasing the children’s cultural awareness and developing their love of the subject and we, therefore, incorporate as many opportunities as possible. Highlights have been a picnic with the Pre-Prep children, La Glacerie with Year 3, role-plays at the doctor’s surgery and market stalls with Year 4, Le café Français and shopping with Year 5, full immersion into the language on the French Trip and pen pal writing with Year 6, the inaugural Spelling Bee with Year 7 and an amusing French play Le Château by Onatti Productions for Years 5 to 8. We have loved working with some sixth form pupils at King’s Bruton to support our children with their confidence in French and Spanish speaking too. Languages Day in February was abundant with graffiti art, as we explored the lyrics of the song “On Ecrit Sur Les Murs”, in different languages, as well as celebrating the languages we speak at Hazlegrove. We raised money for Choose Love by dressing up in the style of flags from around the world. During the Eco-Fest, all the children from Year 5 upwards broadened their French vocabulary and eco awareness, by learning verses from a funky rap song which we then compiled together into one school song.

Language learning not only develops important skills in the children, but it opens their eyes to the world around them, promoting greater understanding, tolerance and wonder. We are fortunate to have the space and time to do this at Hazlegrove.

Academic Year Learning Support Unit

By Mrs Seery - Head of LSU

We have had another incredibly productive year in Learning Support. The children have continued to impress us all with their positivity and strong work ethic.

The LSU is always a hive of industry and in any given week, around sixty pupils come through our doors for 1:1 lessons and a number of others for assessments or shorter term support. Children of all abilities come to the department and we are able to support a variety of needs. Study skills, memory work, communication and language skills alongside Maths, Spelling and Reading support form the backbone of our work. Lessons are carefully planned and activities matched to individuals by our experienced and qualified staff. We aim to give children the skills and confidence to reach their potential whilst also embracing each child’s uniqueness.

Our links with the teaching staff and day to day classroom practice have been further strengthened this academic year with more class visits and liaison. In addition, the Head of LSU is part of the Academic Leadership Team, which was formed at the start of the academic year. Dissemination of information is key and teachers are well informed about the needs of all of the children in our care. Updated training on Neurodiversity and individual differences such as Dyslexia, Autism and ADHD was delivered in the January Inset, in addition to a refresher on how assistive technology can help children who find reading and spelling a challenge.

Assistive Technology has been a priority this academic year and for children who are Dyslexic or struggle to handwrite for whatever reason, this becomes even more important. We primarily use the Microsoft accessibility apps and tools because they are the most widely available in day to day life. Did you know that Immersive Reader – accessed through the ‘View’ tab in Word – can change the way the letters look, their size and colour, the colour of the background and the line spacing? You can also have the syllables marked to help readability further and, for those who prefer to listen, Immersive Reader will also read the document to you and help you follow along with a pointer. We also encourage use of the dictate tool, which provides speech to text technology, although like anything tech these days, it does take a bit of training and getting used to! We have continued to add to our range of interventions, attending training and investing in the LSU library which now contains more accessible yet satisfyingly chunky books plus an influx of graphic novels. We aim to foster a love of reading no matter what the ability level. This is enhanced by having audiobook subscriptions, licences for which are allocated to individual children who have profiles that would benefit from this kind of support. I continue to run a typing club twice a week in Assembly and Reading Period to help children get their practice in.

In March we said goodbye to Gail Schreiber, who taught LSU and EAL so ably for eight years. I would like to thank the wonderful team of LSU teachers and support staff: Chrissie Rowbottom, Lorna Wood and Benice Butcher-Nardiello, Lisa Stratton and Fi Parrott for their enthusiasm and dedication. We are so lucky to have them.

Academic Year Outdoor Education

By Mr Birch - Head of Outdoor Education

It has been a fantastic year for getting out and about in our beautiful school grounds. Whatever the weather, Hazlegrove pupils brave the elements and make the most of our environment.

Year 3 have enjoyed learning some new parachute games on the field recently, including making huge waves and mushroom shapes. They were brilliant as ever on their cook out and enjoyed getting to grips with our new gas powered trangia stoves.

Year 4 always look forward to Wednesday afternoons and our lovely time outdoors. We have been so lucky with the weather and all enjoyed the fantastic activities put on by Mrs Hughes and Miss MacDonagh.

The camp out was tremendous fun this year, with glorious weather, yummy food and even Mr Benbow stopped by to play a few rounds of wink murder. Some children even got some sleep!

Year 5 have enjoyed a carousel of activities on Saturday mornings including archery, tents and shelters, the farm and orienteering. We also had rather a lot of welly walks in all of the wet weather this Winter!

Outdoor Ed is always so much fun and the children get so much out of being in the great outdoors through the seasons at Hazlegrove. I’m looking forward to doing it all over again next year!

Year 5

“I’ve really enjoyed starting Food Tech this term and I have loved the dishes we have made but my favourite was the chicken nuggets and homemade ketchup” Emilia C

“Food Tech has been full of fun and exciting recipes. My favourite has been the scones!” Sonny E

Academic Year Food Technology

By Mrs Spilsbury - Head of Food Technology

What a fruitful year it has been in Food Technology!

Year 5 have enjoyed creating a range of sweet and savoury party foods whilst also gaining confidence in the kitchen environment. Year 6 have been busy taking their taste buds on a world tour, creating flavoursome dishes using a range of herbs and spices. Year 7 have been busy developing their own new products for breakfast, considering their target market, labelling, advertising and some carefully considered sustainable packaging ideas.

The Spring term brought out the bakers in their droves! Over 40 cakes were brought in to be judged in our ‘It’s Only Natural’ cake competition as part of our Eco Fest. The entries were incredible, launching the senses into sensory overload by colour, design and flavour which made the judging all the more difficult for Mrs Benbow and the Catering department. We had a wide range of designs which included melting icebergs, Save the Rainforest cakes, to recycling trucks and vegetable patches! A huge well done to everyone who entered the Competition, we have some very talented bakers among us!

Summer brought some sunshine along (eventually!) and with locally sourced produce to help Year 7 design a variety of delectable breakfast delights; from oaty biscuits diving into fruit coulis to a range of breakfast dishes enveloped in a wrap. The pupils loved creating names for their companies as well as some fantasticly eye-catching logos and entertaining TV adverts!

Cooking is such an important and essential life skill, bringing together so many different aspects of the broader curriculum from Maths, English, Science and Geography to name but a few. The children have also been learning about the importance of making healthy eating choices whilst embracing the joy of sharing the nourishing food we create with our friends and family. Keep cooking!

Year 6

“To be a cook or not to be, that is the question” Alex PS

“It’s organic and healthy” Lottie S

Year 7

“It prepares you to be able to cook meals when you are older.” Honor W

“It’s mouthwateringly good!” Digby D

Academic Year

Art

Outstanding All Round Contribution to Art

Lily A

Poppy B

George B

Dorothy L

Sarah S

Allegra V

This year, we have continued to see pupils of all ages and abilities flourish in the Art Department. The space has been a continual hive of activity, or should that be a hive of creativity?! Some of the most memorable moments have been when children have excitedly brought in a piece of work they have laboured on at home. To see them exploring and investigating their own imaginative ideas outside of the confines of school is a reminder that creativity surrounds us and is within us all, especially at a younger age! Starting my lessons by talking about these individual pieces or pointing out an amazing new piece of scholars work on the wall has engaged pupils, stirred debate and made them feel part of the creative hub. Art club and boarders’ activities has been hugely popular with children using the space to do all manner of interesting things. The formidable art scholars worked tremendously hard to produce their superb portfolios, and regardless of whether they secured a scholarship they can all be so proud of their artistic endeavours this year.

In their timetabled lessons, pupils have experimented with a huge range of mediums, worked hard to develop their techniques, and learnt about important artists and art movements. It has been fantastic to see our Lower School pupils develop their confidence in art. They have been excited by projects which have provided essential tactile experiences, and their handling of materials has come a long way in a short space of time. There are some real talents in these year groups, and I looking forward to seeing them thrive in the years to come.

Middle School pupils have expressed their ideas through drawing, painting, printmaking, and sculpture. Year 5 children produced particularly striking lino prints based on the geometric designs of the Ndebele people of Southern Africa. Year 6 made giant pop art-inspired ice creams from card, paper, masking tape and acrylic paint, whilst earlier in the year they created vibrant nature-inspired paintings full of unusual shapes and forms. A selection of pupils also had a brilliant day out at Sherborne School where they modelled their very own bird out of paper and wire!

In the Upper School, pupils have worked hard on refining existing skills and learning new creative approaches, with lots of impressive work being produced. Both year groups have explored relief printmaking using lino and their experimental, individual approach yielded a range of highly original outcomes. A favourite of the Year 8s was a cake-inspired project encompassing 2D and 3D outcomes. They enjoyed the creative freedom of designing their own original slice of cake and set about crafting this from clay using slab building methods. Once glazed, the pieces emerged from the kiln looking stunning. This was a truly satisfying project which is sure to be repeated!

Once again, the Arts Showcase in collaboration with Music and Design Technology was a fantastic,and very well attended, event. Parents and their children enjoyed walking around the Department to view the wide range of drawings, collages, prints, paintings and sculptures exhibited. Indeed, collaboration between departments continues to grow with lots of pupils producing colourful words in French and Spanish for a ‘graffiti wall’ on Languages Day. We repeated an Art and DT seashell project with Year 3, again with amazing results. And, working with Drama to make bespoke props for the Year 6 and Year 8 productions provided added weight and atmosphere to the staging of these performances. Such collaborations bring many benefits and will no doubt continue to grow in the years ahead.

Finally, our weekly Friday celebration assembly has continued to see artistic achievements recognised and celebrated in the ‘Artist of the Week’ slot. We have seen such breadth and talent on display from all ages, and I think it is a healthy sign that I often find it so difficult to choose who to award this to each week!

Joel Baker Head of Art

Academic Year Design and Technology

Outstanding All Round Contribution to Design and Technology

Poppy B

Sophia G-R

Olly R

Sarah S

Oscar W

Another very productive year with pupils moving on up to their next Year group and with it, new Design and Technology challenges and skills. Year 3 have been able to experience using hand tools, computer aided design and 3D printing to create a range of final products. Likewise, Year 4 began to stretch their legs in the workshop with the wood based Calendar project and designing themed picture frames cut on the laser cutter. Year 5 experienced the safe use of machines for the first time with their Boat project while Year 6 used acrylic for their keyrings, explored the world of structures with the bridge building competition and finished off by studying the work of renowned Scottish designer, Charles Rennie Mackintosh and designing a phone holder in his style. Year 7 worked on clock designs influenced by Pop Art and the Memphis Design Group as well as developing their sketching and presentation skills. Year 8 have been extremely busy with wood-based projects culminating in the Keepsake Box design. DT clubs are well attended where students can work on their modelling skills in the workshop or on CAD programmes.

The department has also been building props for school plays and displays on show around the campus with the help of club students and boarders. All in all, a most productive year so far.

And where can this all lead? The experiences gained in the DT department will provide pupils with a significant range of skills and knowledge that will be beneficial to them throughout their lifetime as well as providing a foundation towards a vast array of possible career opportunities including engineering, product design, architecture, graphics, electronics, film and television design and many other creative possibilities to name but a few. Pupils are encouraged to become resilient, creative, and flexible and have the ability to meet challenges head on and problem solve to a successful conclusion. They should be able to plan, research, execute and evaluate a project from beginning to end using appropriate procedures, tools, equipment and machines. They should also be aware of good practice, safe working environments, the range of possible materials and outcomes as well as the work of other designers (past and present), manufacturers and in other cultures. They will work individually and as part of teams in a range of curriculum projects designed to cover the syllabus in depth but in a manner that is accessible to all abilities. In short, we are encouraging innovation, risk taking and self-sufficiency in preparation for adult life.

Paul Curran Head of Design and Technology

Performing Arts Drama and Music

Outstanding All Round Contribution to Drama and Dance

Holly L

Dorothy L

Danny S

Outstanding All Round Contribution to Music

Poppy B

Elizabeth C-T

Naomi H

Holly L

Daniel M

Nella P

William R

Georgia S

Zahra S

Allegra V

What a year we have had in Music and Drama. Our jam-packed calendar, from concerts and services to productions and school visits, has displayed the wealth of talent and enthusiasm at Hazlegrove, placing our school well and truly on the musical map. Our superb staff have given their all, with the peripatetic team (music), Miss Proctor (Teacher of Drama) and Miss de la Poer (Teacher of Speech and Drama) supporting the Hazlegrove children in a host of truly wonderful endeavours.

The Performing Arts are a crucial part of every child’s education at Hazlegrove, with the nurture of confidence and a love of performing at the very heart of our ethos. Music and Drama form a vital part of the curriculum right the way through the school, helping the children shine every step of the way. Even our most retiring wallflowers find their feet, and by Year 8 they are singing and dancing alongside their peers with superb confidence and enjoyment.

No sooner had the new school year started, than we were back into the swing of things with our weekly Friday concerts. A huge “well done” to all those who had been beavering away over the Summer holidays, and were able to perform so early in the Autumn term.

With ensembles rehearsing from Week 2, we were ready to welcome musicians (and Old Hazlegrovians) from King’s Bruton just before Half Term for the first of our biannual Joint Concerts. As always, our children really stepped up to the mark, singing and playing beautifully in our Hazlegrove groups, before coming together en masse to perform in the Joint Orchestra, the Joint Military Band and to sing a spine-tingling rendition of Eric Whitacre’s The Seal Lullaby in the Joint Choir.

Our annual Fireworks Night provided a superb platform for our Year 8 Band of 2023/24, who performed a fantastic array of crowd-pleasers under a starry sky. The band left their audience shouting for more, and their set only came to an end as the first firework exploded.

Behind the scenes, our Music and Drama departments were hard at work on the upcoming Lower School and Year 6 Productions. However, our Year 7s were already ahead of the curve, preparing and then performing their energetic year group adaptation of Peter Pan in the Theatre in November.

As the term drew to a close, our much-anticipated Carols with the Orchestra brought a wealth of festive cheer to the final week. School instrumentalists, parents and staff joined our orchestra for an evening of carols in the Theatre, with surprise performances from some of our ensembles and our very own Michael Bublé (aka Mr Benbow) singing Jingle Bells alongside Mrs Sclater, Mrs Moore and Mrs Cleverley.

The Autumn term culminated in another memorable Carol Service at Wells Cathedral, where our various choirs delivered some mesmerising performances in the hallowed setting, with highlights including Eric Whitacre’s Glow by our Hazlegrove Voices and staff and the joint Year 5 and Chapel Choir Stars I Shall Find by Victor C. Johnson.

After our festive break, we were back to the Spring Term with a burst of energy, leaping into the Lower School Production in Week 3. As expected, the performance of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Camelot showed our talented bunch of Year 3s and 4s in their best light, with superb singing, dancing and acting skills on full display to a very enthusiastic audience.

Inspired by their success, the whole school then forged ahead towards their very first House Song Competition. Over the course of several House assemblies, Dover, Lyon, Norton and Tremlett each worked hard to produce their own cover of a well-known song relating to the natural world. Impressively led and supported by House staff, each song – performed to the whole school and judged by King’s Bruton Director of Music, Mr Marshfield – showed Hazlegrove’s spirit at it’s best, with incredibly creative and enthusiastic performances given by all.

In the second half of term, it was the turn of Year 6, who stepped up in March to perform Shrek Jnr, the Musical. The performances were memorable indeed, with each show packed full of humour, excitement and incredibly poignant moments. We were so proud of this super bunch of children and are keeping fingers crossed that many of them will continue singing in Hazlegrove Voices in September 2024!

Our fabulous Spring Term ended in style with the 2023/24 Festival Concert, featuring a diverse array of Hazlegrove’s musical ensembles and choirs. From Guitar to Brass Ensemble, and Rock Band to Year 6 Choir not forgetting our junior Hazlegroove Percussion Group, the Hazlegrove community performed with confidence and skill before a packed audience. All were blown away by the finale, as every musician came together in a choir of over 100 children. As the term came to a close, our Easter Service at Sherborne Abbey highlighted just how far our choirs have come, with our young Chapel Choir performing beautifully in the inspiring and ancient setting.

The Music and Drama Departments maintained their energetic momentum into the Summer Term with instrumental tuition a part of the curriculum in Years 2, 3 and 4 (violins and recorders). Year 5 continued our tradition of plays with a sensational trip up the Tor, featuring some wonderful performances throughout the year group as well as some very groovy tune singing. A second Joint Concert (this time held at King’s Bruton) provided Hazlegrove musicians with further opportunities to perform alongside King’s students, with orchestral, wind and choral music aplenty. A real highlight was Joschua Fought the Battle of Jericho from Rutter’s Feel the Spirit, giving all involved a real sense of belonging to the Hazlegrove/King’s Bruton community.

Following the huge success of last year’s inaugural Year 8 Music and the Arts Showcase, our 2024 leavers followed suit in May. Thankfully without the unwelcome addition of a swarm of bees this year, we were able to take over the Theatre, setting the room alight with extremely accomplished solos, toe-tapping band numbers and our Year 8 choir, who sang History by One Direction with joy and great spirit.

This impressive standard set the tone for the remainder of term as our superb Lower School performed their talent-packed Lower School Concert to family and friends. There is much to be excited about in the Lower School, and we have great hopes from this talented bunch as the future of Hazlegrove Music.

Following this, and after only two weeks of intense rehearsals, our Year 8 Leavers produced one of our most memorable productions; Angels at the Ritz. Our audience was enthralled by an incredibly mature and intensely moving depiction of WW2 scenes, from the glamour of The Ritz to an evacuee-packed station platform and English skies peppered with Spitfires and Messerschmitt. The choreography and singing was superb, as our Year 8s sang, danced and acted their way around the stage, directed by Mrs Sclater, Mr Edwards and Miss Proctor. As the accompanying house band of Hazlegrove staff brought the evening to a close, our 2024 Leavers gave their all to Barbie favourite, Dance the Night, accompanied by an explosion of confetti, pink balloons and streamers. What an experience this was!

Our final “hurrah” was performed at the 2023/24 Speech Day, with our Guitar Ensemble and Wind Band ending a super year in music, and a sensational performance of We Are the World (including its 2010 “25 for Haiti” rap – a Hazlegrove Speech Day first!) sung by the entire school. This firmly reinforces our belief that choral life is at the heart of Hazlegrove, with every child a proud performer on the School stage.

Within the Music department, our dedicated peripatetic teachers have continued to support all our Hazlegrove musicians over the past year. Our young performers have made remarkable progress, and it has been a privilege to witness their development from early performances in the Autumn Term to accomplished recitals at the end of the summer. Many of our boarding and day pupils have also benefited from working towards music exams, both recorded and live, with some of our younger children in Years 4 and 5 already working at Grade 5 standard. This is exciting indeed!

In Drama, the curriculum has enjoyed a welcome refresh this year, with Miss Proctor taking charge of this area of the Performing Arts. Her support to staff in the Lower School and Year 5 productions, and her lead of the Year 7 plays have been extremely welcome. Creative choreography and staging has been a fantastic addition to the Year 6 and Year 8 productions and, as a result, Miss Proctor has given our Hazlegrove dramatists much to build on next year. It is with sadness that we say “goodbye” and “good luck” for her next venture at Wells Cathedral School.

And so we draw 2023/24 to a close. We have worked incredibly hard, but the sensational performances throughout the year have shown that dedication and perseverance are well worth the effort. Great stories really do begin here!

Performing Arts Speech and Drama

By Miss de la Poer

Speech and Drama Cup

Holly L

Daniel S

Autumn Term

Years 2 – 4 covered a wide variety of texts designed to develop confidence and basic skills such as interpretative, technical and communication skills.

Years 5 - 8 children focused on their acting and devised exams and some of our Year 8 children worked on scholarships to their next school.

Spring Term

Drama scholarships were won by Charlotte H, Nella P, Danny S, Charlotte W and Sophia G R (drama as part of an all-rounder) to King’s Bruton.

Year 2 – Listening and giving feedback on others in the group, focusing on audibility, tone and clarity of diction when performing text.

Year 3 – Clown texts were used to encourage conversation on how movement affects words.

Year 4 – Storytelling was the focus, learning to develop a clear beginning, middle and end experimenting with vocal pitch, pace, tone, pause and projection through movement.

Years 5 – 8 Children’s outstanding LAMDA results from the Autumn term were performed at our annual showcase. Simple staging and props were magically brought to life by some confident performances! 68 children took part and writers included William Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw, Frances Hodgson Burnett, Kenneth Grahame, James Reeves and William Archibald and were enjoyed by all. These exams help in all areas of life.

Summer Term

103 children worked towards their summer LAMDA exams including Verse and Prose, Public Speaking and Devising. These exams instill confidence in the children and help them to develop performance and communication skills.

After School Clubs

The breadth on offer in the after-school clubs programme continues to bring interest, engagement and enjoyment for the children. For those who want to run around and enjoy team sports, the Football, Touch Rugby and Hockey clubs meet their needs and are always full. Tennis, Badminton, Squash , Athletics, Netball and Swimming also help burn some energy, as does the Fitness Fun club.

Creativity is provided in the Art, DT, Drama, Recycled Fashion, Jewellery, Friendship Bracelet, Outdoor Sketching and Movie Making Clubs. Strategy and brain power are challenged in the Board Games, Chess, Coding, Code Breaking and Croquet clubs.

Whilst enjoying nature in the Woodland Games Club is always a popular option, as is making a difference to others in the Environmental Heroes, Silver Stories and Random Acts of Kindness clubs. Other clubs, to name but a few include Gardening, Lego Quest, Drones, Cooking, Just Dance, Sing Along Musical, Judo, Golf and Laser Pistol Shooting.

I challenge any child not to find something that they can enjoy!!

Eco Committee

By Mrs Benbow

This year saw the reinvigoration of Eco work across the school with the creation of Eco committees in the Pre Prep and Prep School. These committees have driven initiatives such as encouraging mindful eating to reduce food waste and they held a Food Waste competition in the Spring term. They have been looking at how to develop the biodiversity of our wonderful estate and as well as encouraging the groundsmen to leave areas of the grounds to grow wild, they have also created three wild-flower beds.

There have been various upcycling projects and a drive to reduce single use plastic around the School. The committee has looked at many aspects of Hazlegrove life to see where we can improve and been more eco-conscious and watch this space for changes ahead in things like bookbags.

We are so pleased that our work has been recognised and we have been shortlisted for the Environmental Achievement Award in the Independent School of the Year Awards. We have also been awarded Eco-Schools Green Flag status and achieved a distinction for the environmental changes we have made this year. Thank you to all those staff and children who have worked hard this year on these projects.

This year has been filled with a variety of different charitable events to not only raise money for worthy causes but also to raise the children’s awareness to issues in their local and global communities. Over the year, amongst other things, we have held three cake sales to raise money for MacMillan Cancer and baked showstopping cakes during EcoFest for environmental causes.

We have collected food for the Yeovil Food Bank, collected sports clothes for SOS Kit Aid, donated books to a school in Yeovil through the Children’s Book Project, planted Crocuses around the School to support the Rotary Club’s Purple for Polio initiative, dressed up for Children in Need, read stories to the older generation as part of the Silver Story project, donated clothes through Bag2School, completed sponsored walks and with the help of our parents we managed to reach our target of 1million skips for Cancer Research.

Thank you to everyone for supporting these events and raising much needed funds for a range of life changing charities.

Friends of Hazlegrove

What a year it has been for the Friends of Hazlegrove, with the introduction of two new events into the yearly programme and other smaller activities such as inspirational trips to Ben Goldsmith’s estate and wreath making workshops hosted by one of our wonderful parents. As has become the tradition, the year started off with the Friends Drinks Party in September, where new parents had their first taste of the warmth of the Hazlegrove community, and literally their first taste of Boney’s wonderful canapes! This was followed by the famous Bonfire Night in November, which despite increasing costs, still treated us to a spectacular fireworks display. Numbers surpassed last year’s record, and it was lovely to see three generations enjoying the night and tucking in to the various culinary delights, not to mention the candyfloss. December saw the introduction of the Christmas Fair which was hosted in the Pre-Prep. This was an absolute triumph, with a wide range of different stalls to suit every shopping need. It was so successful stall holders have been fighting to gain a place for the next one. The Quiz Night in the Spring term was another hotly contested event, and the year was rounded off with the Hazlegrove Dog and Flower Show. What an event that was, filled with fun and joy, epitomising the family ethos and community spirit that makes Hazlegrove so special.

Through the generosity of the Hazlegrove community, volunteering, attending and supporting events, the Friends have raised a significant amount of money to help fund a variety of different projects around the School. This year this has enabled the Music department to buy a new grand piano, the girl’s boarding house to develop their garden, and exciting plans are in place for enhancing the Pre-Prep and Lower School play spaces. The Friends have been instrumental in the upcoming regeneration of one of the School ponds, which will allow children to utilise this resource for science and environmental studies. Without the investment of the Hazlegrove community these events would not happen and these projects would not be possible, so a huge thank you goes out to you all for your continued support.

It has been lovely to welcome some new faces to the Friends Committee this year, who have all worked tirelessly to make the events so successful. A huge thank you to everyone who is part of the Committee and to all of the other members of our community who have helped at events, offered services and talent and given up time. Here’s to another exciting year ahead.

Sport

By Mr Cobb - Director of Sport

A picture tells a thousand words. Looking at some of the action photos it is clear that the sporting programme at Hazlegrove is thriving. The regular fixtures provide great opportunities to be involved in creating some fantastic memories. Whilst the photos represent a moment in time, it is how one gets to that moment that is perhaps more important. All the PE, games lessons and the busy activities and clubs the pupils involve themselves in day after day, are the actual story and reason that sport remains such an enjoyable learning experience.

There are always highlights and achievements to celebrate. The weekly celebration assemblies are a chance to recognise medals, cups, certificates and participation in a wide variety of school events. Whether you are a county champion or new to a sport there will hopefully be some activity that will take your interest and give the opportunity to remain active. Health through motion is an important concept that will help and provide coping mechanisms that thriving in an increasingly complicated world now demands.

Well done on another successful year to the Hazlegrove sporting community!

Sporting Awards

Outstanding All Round Contribution to Sport (Girls)

Bibi A

Emily A

Elizabeth C-T

Rosie F

Naomi H

Arabella P

Georgia S

Zahra S

Charlotte W

Outstanding All Round Contribution to Sport (Boys)

George B

Beau B

Magnus B

Archie G

Oliver G

George E

Lochie L

Daniel M

Charles M

Girls’ Hockey

Boys’ Cricket

Girls’ Cricket

Riding Parents’ Matches

Judo

Biathlon

Laser Shooting