Enrichment
Programme Leader for Whole-School Enrichment
Enrichment is an enhancement and extension of classroom learning, that gives students the chance to explore their interests as well as discover new ones. It is now also considered key to increasing future employability as it aims to develop core life skills such as organisation, time management and teamwork which in turn increases self-confidence and motivation. Universities and employers are wanting to see these abilities more and more to help gauge a person beyond their grades and qualifications.
"I really am proud to be part of a school with so many wonderful opportunities."
Olivia, Year 8
At Barnhill Community High there is a growing number of weekly curriculum enrichment opportunities ranging from technology clubs to sports to choir; as well as non-curricular activities such as a film club, photography club, yoga club, chess club and debating society to name but a few:
Talk and workshop feedback from Elphaba in Wicked!
Laura Pick plays Elphaba in Wicked! Probably the greatest female lead role currently available in theatre. She took time out from preparations to reopen at the Apollo Victoria to speak to Barnhill students and give feedback on performances, as well as perform live to the delight of the students.
Show Racism the Red Card Week at Barnhill
Year 7 - 10 discuss issues in 5 session event and prepare for National competition in creative writing and art. The school teamed up with the National movement 'Show Racism the Red Card' (SRTRC) to take part in a competition for a piece of creative writing, and a piece of art.
Top Scientists talk exclusively to Years 7 - 9 to mark British Science Week
All students in Year 7 - 9 attended an hour-long talk with Q&A, given by Scientists, exclusive to Barnhill, organised by Mr Potts as part of our Character Curriculum. There were 8 sessions in total, with some Scientists speaking twice.
Educational Visits
Allied to this, groups of students are taken out of school to experience the rich and diverse opportunities London has to offer as arguably the greatest capital city in the world. Students have attended museums; centres of cultural importance and even the West End of London! You can see a snapshot of recent events near the bottom of the page.
Outstanding Visitors into School
The third strand of Enrichment is bringing experts in their fields into the school to give an insight into the world of opportunities and possibilities that exist for all. Recent visitors have included a medical doctor giving advice on a career in Medicine; an international finance director of a large corporation; artists with number one records under their belt; a celebrated children’s author and professionals from TfL, the Home Office and Regional Health services. We recently welcomed an author of 6 books and Guardian columnist on World Book day.
Enrichment is part of the School's Character Curriculum programme. In our aim of enriching student experiences at secondary school, we hope to build lasting memories, provide unique insights, and allow students see and experience the life choices available to them, some of which they may not have previously considered as they go on to become valuable members of our society, and play a part in shaping it’s future.
“Character is important – a CV may get you the interview, but character will get you the job.”
Tim Peake, Astronaut
Some of our past Enrichment Events
STEM Science Workshops in Westminster
Year 9 and 10 girls took part in a STEM workshop at the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. This was an invitation only event from the organisers with only 200 participants Nationally.
“It was a pleasure to meet your students, who were all incredibly engaged and asked really insightful questions, not just on STEM careers but also on topics like wellbeing, confidence, and dealing with life’s obstacles. One of our speakers got in touch afterwards to say that she herself had felt inspired by the conversations being had and this is down to how open the students were!"
Siobhan Sherry, Head of Biomass Electricity Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy
Behind the scenes at Parliament
An Enrichment visit to Parliament occurred on 13th December 2019. Students from Year 9 and 10 visited the House of Commons and the House of Lords with a guided tour. Following that, they had a workshop at Parliament on Voting and Representation - the day after the General Election!
The National Gallery, London landmarks, and Wicked! the Musical
Students enjoyed a marvellous trip to the National Gallery followed by a walk around some of the famous sights of London. After a showing of the West End smash hit 'WICKED!' students got to meet the stars and get their autographs.
“The trip was great, we went to the art gallery, where I found Van Gogh's Sunflowers, as he used so many art techniques. We saw so many tourist attractions that I can't name them all. Afterwards we came to the musical: Wicked. To tell the truth I don't really like musicals but this one was amazing!!!! After the musical we got the actors autographs!!! (I got a few myself). We went home knowing that no one in the school had a better day than us.”
Maks
An exciting visit to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London
“We started off the day with a briefing of what we were going to do for the day. Once we had arrived at Victoria & Albert Museum we were greeted by a friendly employee who instructed us in where to go for now. The place was amazing. They had extremely well-built sculptures of human bodies. We kept going through the different exhibits. My favourite area was the musical production area. They had the costume for Elphaba from the original Wicked show which was worn by Idina Menzel! Overall the whole trip was really fascinating and amazing.”
Daniels
Year 8 students visit the Historic English Heritage Site of Kenwood House
With expert-led workshops, students explored the emergence of the abolition movement of the 18th-century; and the lives of the Mansfield family during interactive sessions.
Wembley Stadium
A group of Year 8 students enjoyed a VIP access-all-areas Enrichment trip this week.
Students sat in the historic England dressing room, gave their own press conference and enjoyed talks from staff who work at the stadium.
Students were picked for this visit by their Head of Year for excellent personal achievement in school to date.
Churchill Underground War Rooms
In late February twenty Year 8 and ten Year 12 students went on an Enrichment visit with Mr Liddell and Ms Swain to the “Churchill Underground War Rooms.” In the words of the museum, their mission was to ‘Discover the secrets hidden beneath the streets of Westminster in the underground nerve centre where Winston Churchill and his inner circle directed the Second World War.’
“I enjoyed all of the interesting things I saw. There were many things that I learnt about Churchill and the Second World War that I didn’t know about and I have since told other people. The statues in the rooms looked really realistic. I liked that you had a sort of phone which told you information at every point.” George
The British Museum
A group of Year 9s were taken to investigate the treasures of the British Museum. From the Mummy of Katebet to Samurai Armour; and from the Elgin Marbles to the Rosetta Stone students described the day as a real adventure.
VE Online Commemorations
The whole school took part in varied activities to mark this important milestone in the UK’s history. Students carried out written assignments on a range of topics based on age group, including ‘what is VE Day and why we mark it’; The policies Britain fought against, key conflicts, bravery, and post-war Britain after VE Day; Invasion, occupation, resistance, and liberation; and the Blitz, rationing and bravery. Some students interviewed a Royal Navy Captain and others presented war poems. As students moved between activities we recorded an amazing 837 students during the session, with 1,048 total views in total through the main portal with a further 92 accessing through alternative links with a smaller bandwidth.
Year 7 Victoria Albert Museum Trip
Students are taken out of school to experience the rich and diverse opportunities London has to offer as arguably the greatest capital city in the world. Year 7 have visited the Victoria and Albert Museum; and centres of cultural importance recently. All of the current Year 7 were taken to the Science Museum in London as part of a school-wide Deep Learning Day last November.
National Gallery Visit
In December selected Year 7 who had worked hard in Term 1 joined other Year groups on a marvellous trip to the National Gallery followed by a walk around some of the famous sights of London. After a showing of the West End smash hit 'WICKED!' students got to meet the stars and get their autographs.
“The trip was great, we went to the art gallery, where I found Van Gogh's Sunflowers, as he used so many art techniques. We saw so many tourist attractions that I can't name them all. Afterwards we came to the musical: Wicked. To tell the truth I don't really like musicals but this one was amazing!!!! After the musical we got the actors autographs!!! (I got a few myself). We went home knowing that no one in the school had a better day than us.”
Maks, Year 7
World Book Day
For World Book Day, all of Year 7 met an author of 8 books and Guardian columnist as he passed on tips to young writers. Author Philip Womack arrived in a special week of reading and writing culminating in World Book Day. Author of 8 books and a writer for the Guardian, Philip talked about the writing process in a talk with all of Year 7 and did a special reading. Afterwards he ran a series of Workshops writing later, “I had a lovely time, and how great the school is - it's such a pleasure to see not only dedicated and imaginative staff but also keen and interested children!”
“Meeting a famous author and hearing him talk in assembly about his books, life and ambitions was particularly inspiring. I really appreciated how he spoke about his books and everyone listened with a great level of interest. He taught me an important thing: to never give up and keep on trying! He had a passion for Greek mythology and taught us all that we had passions too, and could pursue them with courage and determination, which I found very helpful. Some students in years 7,8,9 and 10 were fortunate enough to be invited to some special workshops. During this time, we learnt how to write action in a story from a real author who gave us extremely beneficial tips.”
Mia, Year 7
Year 7 join in an exploration of London following a morning at a Gallery - before going to see a West End Show!
You can find out more about the exciting Enrichment opportunities by clicking or tapping here. Wembley Stadium, Parliament, STEM workshops in Westminster... find out about some of the activities other Year Groups got up to last Year!
The current weekly Enrichment clubs and teams are below. You can also download a copy at the end of this page.
