At Heartwood CE VC Primary and Nursery School we care about the Swaffham community, our county, the world around us and the people and animals that live within it. Here you will find out more information about all the amazing projects that we take part in, to make the world a better place and to help others live life in all its fullness.

Citizenship is a key part of our Making a Difference curriculum, developing pupils' character,  teaching pupils how to be responsible and active citizens who contribute positively to society. 

Our approach to 'Making a Difference'  is built upon 6 principles for effective social action:

• Socially impactful to help the community. Quality social action that responds to the real needs of Swaffham and really helps local people. This extends to the wider geography too. 
• Embedded to create lasting changes and behaviour. Social action is a golden thread throughout our whole school curriculum and Heartwood values. 
• Child-led, owned and shaped by our children's needs , ideas and decision-making. Giving the children the knowledge, skills and vocabulary to lead projects to make a difference. 
• Challenging pupils by having high expectations. At Heartwood, we encourage children to problem-solve their way around barriers outside their control.
• Progressive creating a long-lasting approach to making a difference and commitment to helping others
• Reflective recognising the difference that Heartwood has made and thinking critically about how to take this further or improve our approach 

Each year, we ask parents to decide what the main charities will be that the school will support, one local and one national/international. This creates a meaningful context to our charity work.

Sustainable school environment 

At Heartwood, our environment is sustainable with the lowest impact we can have on the environment. We source old and restored furniture, materials and resources which reduce the carbon footprint on our world. We take careful consideration when purchasing materials such as plastic and ensure that all other options have been explored prior. 

Where possible, we use resources from our environment, forest and local building sites. Pupils get involved in up cycling materials and furniture we bought and that has been donated. 

Our school environment is stunning, sustainable and has careful consideration for our beautiful world. 

Singing at local Care Homes for VE Day 80

Our Year 4 children visited two care homes in Swaffham and sang wartime songs in celebration of VE day 80. Year 4 then received some beautiful thank you notes from the residents.

Charity Donations

At our Christmas performances in 2024, we collected donations for a charity close to our hearts. 

The Eco Warriors have been learning about the potential impact of litter on the local environment. They have been litter picking and sorting their waste into recycling. There was over 80% that could be recycled!

We shared ideas and a vision with the local Cllr Ian regarding a pond for Heartwood. In partnership we applied for a Green Grant and this funded the majority of the pond installation. 

Here are some the main areas of impact of this project:

Nature: The pond is a true wildlife magnet, providing homes, breeding grounds, bathing spots, food and a watering hole for all manner of creatures including birds, ducks, frogs and insects. It’s always great fun to spot these beautiful creatures using this area and a great love of the children’s. It's very rewarding feeling to know you are helping your local wildlife thrive.   

Educational: There are few better ways to educate children about wildlife and water safety than having access to our own pond. The pond is a great way and inspires and encourages children’s natural curiosity about wildlife. It is an excellent tool for teaching children about our responsibility for caring for the environment, plus as a way to remind them about how to behave safely around bodies of water.

Eco School Flag! 

We are delighted to have been awarded our second Eco-school flag!!

We counted our first collection total of batteries. We have collected 548!! We are going to continue to run this until the end of June.

Food Bank Donations

Thank you to all of our school community who have donated this past year! 

Carol Singing at Christmas

 

After being inspired about the work of Lenny Henry in our Black History Heroes week, some members of the Otter class asked is they could raise some money to help Comic Relief. They researched, bought, baked and sold cakes to the community- making over £56!

COP 26

To raise awareness ahead of the COP26 we researched, reflected and created poems and artwork about natural disasters. Each class looked at a different disaster. We displayed this in St Peter and St Paul's church. 

Art communicates so many messages and can make the recipient feel happy, warm and give them enjoyment and connections. We were privileged to display our art work at the Swaffham Rotary Club Visual Arts Festival to make a difference for the people in our community. 

Art communicates so many messages and can make the recipient feel happy, warm and give them enjoyment and connections. We were privileged to display our art work at the Swaffham Rotary Club Visual Arts Festival to make a difference for the people in our community. 

Sustainable Swaffham 

We are actively taking part in the town's initiative to be more sustainable. As part of our pledge we are offering free water refills to members of the public and our community. 

• Refill

Heartwood Heroes on BBC Radio Norfolk

Here are some photos of the sunflowers we have grown from seed and potted up for people in our local community of Swaffham, Norfolk.

Mouse class have been investigating and the bees need more flowers for nectar. They have made up gift bags containing seeds to give to the local community to help with the planting. Some of the mouse class children were busy posting them through local letter boxes. 

 

We have been made aware by the local Town Councillor of a litter issue in our local town, we have been working hard to address this issue as a school community. 

We will be contributing towards a new public litter bin and have ensured that we are equipping the children with the knowledge, understanding and skills of how to protect their local community. Children have been litter picking in their time at school. 

These children have taken this further and have been litter picking at home to Make a Difference to their local areas- Heartwood Heroes!!!

 

• Heartwood Heroes make the press for their contribution to the Eco-school award

We have set up a Community Book Hive for the community of Swaffham. Please help yourself to a book to snuggle up at home with. You are welcome to keep one, borrow and return or swap for another one to share the reading love. 

Happy reading! 

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Protecting our environment

We are proud to have been awarded the Bronze and Silver Eco-school awards, we have been working hard to ensure that we are becoming an eco-friendly school. 

 

Our wonderful community

We are thankful to the local community for all their support with our school. The generosity and kindness of local businesses, including; Waitrose, Travis Perkins, The COOP Necton, The White Hart, Tescos and the church have contributed to making Heartwood the wonderful and inclusive school it has become. 

Thank you