Time travel was the theme when our children came together with others from across the West Norfolk Academies Trust for an annual celebration of dance, which featured music spanning decades from the 1940s to the modern era.

This year’s WNAT Dance Festival was held at Springwood High School on Wednesday 1 July and saw around 130 pupils from ten primary schools showcase their talents to an audience of some 200 people.

Besides host Springwood, whose dancers opened the event, Trust schools taking part included Clenchwarton, Gaywood, Heacham Junior, Snettisham, Walpole Cross Keys, and West Lynn. They were also joined by dancers from the Windmill Primary Federation schools of Terrington St John, Tilney St Lawrence, Walpole Highway, and West Walton.

‘Time Travel Through the Decades’ took the audience on a whistle-stop musical tour of the last eighty years, with dances performed to tracks such as ‘In the Mood’, ‘Rock Around the Clock’, ‘Surfin’ USA’. ‘You Should be Dancing’, ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go’, a nineties mash-up, and ‘Zoo’.

Emma Hunt is Executive Headteacher at the Windmill Primary Federation, and worked with WNAT Administrator Emma Pearman to coordinate the event, which was taking place for the fifth time.

“Some of the highlights of the Dance Festival were seeing primary school children embrace the opportunity to perform with enthusiasm, confidence, and pride in front of their families and communities,” she said.

“Another particularly rewarding aspect was bringing together students from many different schools to share a common experience together. As Helen Keller said, ‘Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.’”

Kate Whyborn and a team of choreographers from KLW Dance worked with the children on the routines, rehearsing with them in the weeks leading up to the performance.

Mrs Hunt continued: “Events like this play a vital role in providing students with opportunities to explore new interests, develop new skills, and challenge themselves in a supportive and encouraging environment.

“They inspire students to step outside their comfort zones, build self-confidence, and realise that they are capable of achieving things they may once have thought impossible. These experiences foster creativity, resilience, critical thinking, and an appreciation for teamwork, respect, and kindness.”

She added: “One of the most rewarding outcomes is watching students who may initially feel uncertain or reluctant grow in confidence, take pride in their accomplishments, and enthusiastically share their talents with others.

“Beyond supporting individual growth, these events strengthen connections between the school and the wider community, creating opportunities to celebrate students’ achievements and the positive impact of working together.”

Our top spellers went head to head in an annual competition where pupils from ten West Norfolk Academies Trust schools were challenged to showcase their skills.

The WNAT Primary Spelling Bee featured 30 Key Stage 2 children from Years 3 to 6 across the Trust’s member primary schools, which included Clenchwarton, Walpole Cross Keys, West Lynn, Gaywood, Snettisham, and Heacham Junior, alongside Terrington St John, Tilney St Lawrence, Walpole Highway, and West Walton from the Windmill Federation.

The event took place at Heacham Junior School and was overseen by Emma Hunt, who is WNAT English Lead as well as Executive Headteacher at the Windmill Federation.

“The event forms part of a programme of activities organised by the Trust throughout the academic year,” she said. “These events are designed to build pupils’ confidence, provide opportunities to interact and socialise with peers from other schools within the Trust, develop new skills, and, above all, ensure that pupils enjoy themselves.”

It was the fourth time the Spelling Bee had taken place, with three entrants from each primary qualifying via previous stages held in individual classes and schools. Primary Trust Assistant Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (SENDCo) Darren Furzey was on hand to call out the words.

Mrs Hunt continued: “Pupils pick a number from a hat  – this matches a chair for competitors to sit in. Spellings are called out and individuals answer. They remain in the competition until they spell a word incorrectly, then they sit down until a winner is found.”

Words successfully tackled by this year’s competitors included ‘accommodate’, ‘government’, ‘sincerely’, and ‘quadrilateral’, while the winner was Olivia from Clenchwarton, who correctly spelled ‘accomplishment’ to win a Kindle Fire tablet. Everyone participating received a certificate and chocolate.

Mrs Hunt added: “The Spelling Bee is a particularly valuable event, as it helps pupils develop a deeper understanding of the English language, while expanding their vocabulary.

“Beyond learning to spell words correctly, participation encourages planning, preparation, perseverance, and effective study habits, all of which contribute to pupils’ overall academic development.”

Children from Heacham Junior School were hitting all the right targets, when they joined others from across the West Norfolk Academies Trust to test their skills in an archery competition.

The Upper Key Stage 2 event was hosted by our school, and saw 30 Year 5 and 6 pupils from across the Trust’s six primary schools compete in teams in a series of challenges.

Among the activities were a ‘pizza game’ where pupils had to hit coloured segments of a target representing ‘base’, ‘sauce’, and ‘toppings’ in the right order to build up a pizza, and a contest to score the highest points in a set time limit. Each participant received a certificate to mark their achievements.

Besides our school, other participating WNAT primaries included Clenchwarton, Gaywood, Snettisham, Walpole Cross Keys, and West Lynn.

“Events hosted by our Trust are important because they help children build confidence, focus, and teamwork, while trying something new and inclusive,” said our Class 4 Teacher, James Agate, who oversaw the event.

“They also give schools a chance to bring students together, encourage participation in sport, and support wellbeing and personal development. These events create positive experiences that can inspire children both in and outside the classroom.”

There was something for everyone, when musicians from our school joined others from across West Norfolk for a performance at St Nicholas Chapel in King’s Lynn.

Organised by the West Norfolk Academies Trust, the WNAT Play Day event saw primary school pupils perform alongside older students from the Trust’s four high schools, which include Marshland in West Walton, St Clement’s in Terrington St Clement, Smithdon in Hunstanton, and Springwood in Lynn.

“The Play Day brought together students from across the feeder primary schools to the four WNAT high schools, spanning the breadth of West Norfolk, from West Walton through to Hunstanton and the surrounding areas,” said Benjamin Howell, who is Peripatetic Music Lead at the Trust and helped co-ordinate the event.

“The event featured primary school musicians alongside high school and sixth-form students, who came together to perform as a large Trust ensemble.”

The musical offering was equally wide-ranging, covering themes from television and film as well as classical pieces, while there were also guest performances from some of the schools’ music groups.

“The musical programme was varied and engaging, ranging from the dramatic theme from The Traitors, music from How to Train Your Dragon, Hungarian Dance No. 5, and both the ‘Habanera’ and ‘Toreador’s Song’ from Carmen,” continued Mr Howell

“In addition, we were delighted to feature performances from the Springwood Concert Band, the Sinfonia String Group, and the St Clement’s High School Band, whose performances further demonstrated the musical progression available to students across the Trust.”

Some 187 musicians were involved in the day, which concluded with a concert performance for WNAT staff, trustees, family members, and friends.

Support was provided by WNAT Peripatetic Team members Jo Kemp, Music Lead at St Clement’s; Mary-Ann Robertson; Emily Savage; David Maddison; Nic Bouskill; and Helen Johnson; along with David Stowell from the Norfolk Music Hub; while the event was organised by WNAT Director of Music, Robin Norman, with the assistance of Emma Pearman and Sam Johnson from the Trust.

“We are very appreciative of the Trust Administration Team, Senior Leadership, and Trustees for their support – particularly CEO Andy Johnson,” added Mr Howell.

“Our thanks also go to St Nicholas Chapel for hosting the event, and to the many parents, carers, families, and friends who attended the concluding performance.”

Entries for the KLCC / WNAT Photographic Competition are now open!

Get your entries in for this year's OPEN themed photographic competition. Prizes for all finalists! 

You have until Monday 1st June 2026 to submit your images to e.pearman@wnat.co.uk

See poster for full details along with a guide to photography to help you get some great shots. 

From magic making to chocolate creating, Heacham Junior School enjoyed a particularly imaginative World Book Day experience on Thursday 5 March.

Children from Years 3 to 6 at our school took part in a range of book-themed activities, which included concocting their own Harry Potter-style magical potions, and designing a chocolate bar for Willy Wonka’s Factory.

Pupils and staff also arrived for the day dressed as their favourite fictional characters, while teachers shared passages from their favourite children’s books during a special, whole-school assembly.

“World Book Day is incredibly important, not least this year as it is the National Year of Reading, led by the National Literacy Trust,” said Ashley Kirwan, Assistant Headteacher at our school, which is a member of the West Norfolk Academies Trust.

“Our goal is to try to help children discover a book that unlocks their love of reading or, for many children, continues their love of stories or even non-fiction.”

This year’s event occurred at the perfect time, as we have recently finished upgrading our library facilities.

“We have just upgraded our school library with a load of new fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and graphic novels – just in time for World Book Day,” added Mr Kirwan.