Swaffham Newsletter

TNHA News
We are all getting used to the colder
winter weather and ‘business as usual’
as February arrives and all the festivities are well and
truly behind us. Our Year 11 students have recently
had 3 weeks of GCSE mock examinations under ‘real
conditions’ which gives them experience of what is to
come in the summer. Younger students in Year 7 and 9
have been lucky enough to welcome to the academy
award winning young adult writer Simon James Green
and Norwich based poet Lewis Buxton. They were
involved in various creative workshops on how to
build characters, explore various themes and were up
on their feet taking part in a mixture of drama bases
activities to help them consider the backstory of their
characters.
Meanwhile, in the History Department, it was with
delight that one of our teachers found, lurking in the
back of his cupboard, an admissions ledger from the
old Hamonds School from 1918. The entries are all
handwritten and documents when students were
admitted and left roll for varying reasons. Many local
people will know that the school in Swaffham was
opened after the Lord of the Manor, Sir Nicholas
Hamond, left what was then the princely sum of £1,000
to build and endow a school for boys which was first
built, shortly after his death in 1725, on the Campingland
behind the church. The school moved from the original
site in 1896 into the town with room for 32 boarders
and by 1922 had 130 boys on roll with 30 boarders. This
later became the town’s VI form. (What a find!)
Instead of following their usual study programme, our
students were taken off timetable on the first curriculum
day of the academic year recently when they were given
the opportunities to explore topics relevant to their age
group to include:- apprenticeships, festivals, parties,
clubbing and drugs, knife crime, pornography, road
safety, interview skills, R.E., trade unions, manosphere
and misogyny, T-levels, life skills, first aid, the dangers
of sending intimate photographs, how to choose
options, puberty, careers, drugs and the law, gambling,
danger of social media, STEM learning session with
personnel from RAF Marham, P.E. & healthy lifestyles &
relationships. Most of these sessions were delivered by
outside providers who are experts in their field.
Lastly, warm clothing was very much the order of the
day when students visited Holt County Park learning
problem solving skills involving an orienteering course.
They used their stills to navigate around a set course
within the park boundaries. Further trips out of school
include a trip to the Palace Theatre in London’s West
End to be entertained by the play - Harry Potter and
the Curse Child and to Norwich Theatre Royal to enjoy
Shrek the Musical!
Swaffham Climate &
Environment Group
The January meeting was a very exciting one
with the launch of our new logo acknowledging
the new group name! The incorporation of environment
into the title illustrates the inextricable link between all
environmental issues and climate change. Alongside this
we welcomed a panel from Breckland District Council
(BDC) and Norfolk Climate Change Partnership (NCCP).
We were pleased to hear from Cllr Helen Crane (Executive
Member for Waste, Environmental Health, Licensing &
Sustainability), Jason Cole (BDC Executive Director), Greg
Pearson (NCCP Partnership Manager) and Jonathon Ward
(NCCP Net Zero Innovation & Delivery Manager) and hear
their responses to the many questions from the audience.
Helen gave an update on the Sustainability Strategy which
included progress in installation of LED streetlights to
85%, measured reductions in carbon emissions from BDC
and it’s contractors, and solar panels on Dereham Leisure
Centre.
This exemplary work along with liaison with the Tyndall
Centre for Climate Change Research on behaviour change
is hoped to encourage communities to lower their own
emissions while acknowledging that this is difficult to
achieve. Jonathan explained that Swaffham has been
selected as the community in Breckland that will take part
in the NCCP Net Zero Communities Project. This hopes
to identify the barriers to individuals and different sectors
of the community in reducing their carbon emissions and
find out where support is needed. The project will be
launched in March so you will hear more soon!
Key issues raised in questions were the need for a full
20 mph zone in Swaffham (although this is an issue for
Norfolk County Council), the continued installation of gas
boilers in new builds and lack of solar panels (planning is
constrained by national legislation) and the apparent need
for more partnership working between councils and work
on behaviour change. Questions were too numerous to
mention here showing the keen level of interest.
Come and join us
As always everyone is welcome to our regular monthly
meetings, usually on the second Thursday of each month
at 10am in the Methodist Church. Please get in touch
with either Cathy Mumford on 01760 721847 / 07799
642271, cathyjmumford@gmail.com or David Jones on
01760 722468 / 07806 435066, dljdav@gmail.com to
check on meeting dates and times as they can vary.
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