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Harvest Festival

COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

Alastair Tighe, Head Master of Wells Cathedral School
“At Wells Cathedral School, we are very proud of our close connections with local schools and the local community. We are exceptionally lucky to have some wonderful facilities, and some amazing staff whose passion and knowledge illuminate every subject.
“We love nothing more than opening our doors and sharing what we do with the outside world.
“This page presents just a selection of the extraordinarily wide range of special projects and annual partnership activity that we are committed to every year, and which enable communities beyond the School itself to benefit from everything that we have to offer.
“Please see our community page to explore developing any new partnerships with the School.”
~ Alastair Tighe, Head Master

Educational Initiatives

We have partnerships with numerous local schools and community organisations. Our regular activities for local schools include:

  • An annual Heads of School Conference, for local sixth form pupils
  • Weekly toddler groups for preschoolers
  • Free Junior Science Displays for local primary schools
  • Free Choristry outreach programme for local primary schools
  • Free Rugby, hockey, netball and cricket tournaments for local primary schools
  • Free Primary School Maths Festival for local primary schools
  • Free Drama productions and concerts for local primary and secondary schools
  • Free Oxbridge interview preparation (in conjunction with Millfield) for local sixth form pupils.
12 Schools
•
took part in our 2022 Primary Maths Festival
Heads of School Conference Wells Cathedral Independent School Somerset WCS

Every part of today has been so useful, I’m so glad I came.

~ Local school pupil, Heads of School Conference 2022

Music Educational Initiatives

As one of the UK’s five specialist music schools, we provide FREE activities not only for local children, but talented musicians from state schools across the country. These include:

  • A weekly string orchestra for players aged 6 to 13
  • Instrument Days focusing on specific instruments (above)
  • Side by side events allowing talented young musicians to learn from and perform alongside top professional musicians
  • An annual A Level Music Study Day, attended by state school pupils from across the UK
  • Online special projects such as Salsa Brass Go! and the Online Orchestra
  • Termly Be A Specialist Musician For A Day event for musicians who may be able to access funding via the government’s Music and Dance Scheme
  • An annual Be A Chorister For A Day event
  • Masterclasses and workshops, either at the School or online
Pupils at our Be a Chorister for a Day event
1000+ pupils
•
from other schools engage in our musical activities each year

Music Outreach Initiatives

Child playing music at a dementia singing group

In addition to the educational initiatives outlined above, our FREE music performance activities include:

  • More than 150 free concerts per year for the local community
  • Participating in and providing free facilities for the annual Mayor’s Concert, bringing together pupils from schools across Wells
  • Singalongs and CD recordings with our youngest children for local dementia sufferers
  • Taking part in community events and services such as the civic service for HM The Queen

The children brought such joy to our dementia singing group. Watching the older and younger generations interact was incredibly special.

~ Emma Wheat, Somerset Arts Well

Charity Work

Each year, in partnership with numerous local community organisations, we run a series of charitable projects. These include:

  • An annual charity walk, with more than 500 pupils, to raise funds for Save the Children
  • Numerous charitable events, with sponsored runs, non-uniform days, bake sales and concerts, raising funds for Air Ambulance, Heads Up, Action Against Hunger, SOS Africa and more
  • Charitable collections at our major church services
  • Writing hundreds of Christmas cards for care home residents
  • Ongoing educational work in Sierra Leone, supported by events such as the annual, pupil-led Event On The Lawn
  • In 2022, numerous events raising money for Ukraine, including a chorister campout and the Concert for Ukraine in Wells Cathedral
Ukraine Humanitarian Aid Fundraising Concert Flag WCS Independent School Somerset

Volunteering and Sponsorship

Your pupils have made a real difference to a huge number of vulnerable people in our community at Christmas, bringing festive cheer at a difficult time for so many.

~ Philip Welch, Mayor of Wells

Our local partnerships provide a number of volunteering opportunities for our pupils, including:

  • Volunteering at The Lawrence Centre, a day centre for the older community
  • Litter picking, in conjunction with local primary schools
  • Community work at the Bishop’s Palace, a local charity
  • Collecting and distributing food for the Wells Foodbank

We lend our support to a wide range of causes, and sponsor a range of events, including:

  • Local celebratory events such as Somerset Day
  • Local music competitions
  • Local primary schools’ PTFA fundraising
  • Community events such as the Wells Festival of Literature
Community Service Litter Picking Wells Cathedral Independent School Somerset WCS

Community Events

Working with a host of local organisations, our pupils take part in numerous community events every year, including:

  • Events for the Queen’s Jubilee including a special service, a concert and tree planting
  • Civic services in Wells Cathedral
  • The community Christmas Fair, open to all, which sells products made by local craftspeople
  • A free Fireworks Night, organised by the School and held in the grounds
  • Remembrance Day events at churches across Somerset in which our musicians take part
The Last Post Trumpeters WCS Wells Cathedral Independent School Somerset England

It’s so important that the finest young cricketers in the country are given the best opportunity to showcase their skills… They’ll be very fortunate to play on better grounds, with such a stunning location, than they experienced yesterday!”

~ ECB Bunbury Festival

Facilities

Performance at Wells Comedy Festival

We provide our facilities for a wide range of community organisations and for special events, including:

  • Regular use of our sports facilities by Wells Cricket Club, Somerset County Cricket Club and the ECB Bunbury Festival
  • Use of our arts centre as a community resource for annual events such as the Wells Festival of Literature and Wells Comedy Festival
  • Free use of our facilities for one-off charitable events, such as a fundraiser for Wells skate park
  • Use of our swimming pool by the Royal Life Saving Society
  • We have made our swimming pool, arts centre and sports pavilion available free of charge for displaced Ukrainian families

Community News