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St Swithun’s School Deepens Local Ties Through Expansive Partnership Programme |
At the end of summer term, the U5 community service programme, now in its seventh year, marked the conclusion of the school’s partnership activities for the academic year as Upper 5 students worked directly with local primary schools, collaborating for A Play in a Day and A Day of Sport, whilst also providing hands-on help with grounds and maintenance work.
Over the course of the 2024/25 academic year, more than 600 pupils from eight local primary schools have taken part in enrichment activities led by 130 St Swithun’s students and staff. From drama and art to reading support and PE, the programme delivered over 150 hours of weekly enrichment, underscoring the school’s commitment to shared learning.
For the primary school pupils, these sessions provide additional support as directed by their headteachers; for our students this programme is integral to continuing to make a difference in the wider community and also an important part of their own self-development and broader understanding of society. We encourage our students to seize these opportunities when they arise, particularly as many will have benefitted from volunteer efforts themselves, either at local sports clubs, music groups or youth organisations.
The initiative also offered 30 hours of swimming pool hire, tuition, and transport to five partner schools. More than 350 pupils received transport support to attend off-site educational and co-curricular events.
On campus, St Swithun’s welcomed over 100 primary pupils for sports and drama events, while its lecture programme opened doors to students from local secondary schools and sixth form colleges. A new addition this year saw the school share its lunchtime academic enrichment talks, featuring visiting speakers, with neighbouring secondary schools—broadening access to ideas and discussion beyond its own student body.
In collaboration with Winchester City Swimming Club, the school also launched a holiday swimming programme aimed at improving water confidence among non-swimmers from local primary schools. The initiative provided free tuition and access to facilities, helping children—particularly those on Pupil Premium or receiving free school meals—develop essential water safety skills.
Headmistress Jane Gandee said: “The most important outcome of our partnerships work is the positive impact on the children in our local primary schools and the indirect benefits to our own pupils.”
In an era of widening educational divides, St Swithun’s is quietly rewriting the script—placing compassion, collaboration, and curiosity at the heart of its mission.
- “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, what are you doing for others?” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
- “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Gandhi
- “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.” – Muhammad Ali