At Herne Bay Junior School, we value the joy that our school animal friends bring. Firstly, we want every child to experience the opportunity of having a pet recognising that it is not always possible or practical for them to have one at home. Secondly, we have experienced first-hand the effect that an animal has on soothing a sad or anxious child or adult as well as building confidence in those children who may otherwise experience some fear without the opportunity to engage directly with them.

Currently we have Colin the Gecko, Lincoln and Ivy (our friendly dogs) and three guinea pigs: Neville, Keith & Gus!

Today we have welcomed new animals to the school; this time, 2 pigs! Mr Hobbs and Mr Hewitt have built a pen and created a homely area for them within our forest. These two adopted ‘old ladies’ are entering retirement after spending the last few years in a small-holding within an education centre for adults with special educational needs. Over time, once they have become familiar in their surroundings, we will extend the enclosure to allow them to roam more freely within the boundary. The children will be taught about the care of the pigs including the use of leftover food items and home-grown fodder with which they will be fed.

Having animals in school is purposeful. It provides the children with the experience to recognise, respect and care for them and the environment that we share.

This week, our Year 3 children presented their Nativity in Christ Church, William Street, as part of our annual Carol Service.

It was a wonderful community event, including the families and friends who came to take part.

Reverend Anthony led the service while reminding us all of the true meaning of Christmas.

We wish you a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS from us all at HBJS!

On Thursday 19 May 2022 our Y4 and Y6 school council reps attended CACoT Trust Children’s Forum at Swalecliffe Primary School.

The event was hosted by Ben Cooper, Executive Headteacher of Swalecliffe Primary School and all CACoT schools were represented. This involved children from Y2, Y4 and Y6 supported by Y7 and Y8 students from Herne Bay High School.

The topic of conversation was the current cost of living crisis.

The aim of the event was to get children involved in contributing to the CACoT Trust Board’s future plans by sharing their ideas for how all our schools can work together to support the local community in Whitstable and Herne Bay in these difficult times.

There were 3 outside speakers, Chris Cornell-  Councillor for Whitstable and a governor at Swalecliffe Primary School and Peter and Liam from Canterbury food bank.

The council reps were informed about a number of local schemes and organisations who are working to support families affected by this crisis, such as Riverside community Church, Canterbury Food Bank and Clothing bank, The Magic wardrobe, Whitstable cafes supporting a ‘Pay it Forward’ scheme and the Warm Spaces programme.

There were then 2 discussion sessions held whereby the council reps worked with peers from other schools to put forward questions to the speakers and then ultimately vote on ideas generated to support our local community further.

One powerful piece of information gained yesterday was that there is a food bank App- Food Bank Central. We were amazed to hear it helps you locate places that hold food banks as well as notify you which items are in short supply each time you enter a shop.

At the end of the morning, 3 school council reps were selected at random to attend the next Head Teacher meeting in January 2023 in order to report back on the event and announce the idea voted for.

Amelia Hills (Y6) will be one of the 3 representatives at that meeting.