Students and cadets at The Wellington Academy have been preparing and rehearsing for this year’s Remembrance Day activities, which will be returning to a larger whole school and community wide ceremony this year.

The academy’s Combined Cadet Force (CCF) will be leading the solemnities with a parade, as well as a whole school service of remembrance, and the school will be joined in laying wreaths and falling silent in remembrance by members of the local community and local military units.

The annual Remembrance Day parade and service is a key part of The Wellington Academy’s calendar, which is part of the Royal Wootton Bassett Academy Trust. This is the first time in 18 months that the school has been able to come together on such a scale, with Covid-19 restrictions last year meaning that the school had to hold the parade and service virtually, with the event live streamed into classrooms.

The Wellington Academy Headteacher Steven Paddock, said: “Remembrance Day is a very poignant day at The Wellington Academy and one that the entire CCF has practised for over the last few weeks. We are very pleased that we will have our local community and representatives from our local military units join us to lay wreaths and reflect with us on the contribution and sacrifice that service men and women have made.

“With over half of our pupils coming from military families, it is important to us to take this time away from normal lessons to mark Remembrance Day jointly as a whole school and to give our respect to all those affected by conflict across the world. For them, this mark of respect is still a stark reminder of their everyday family life; many pupils have parents and loved ones who are stationed abroad, with the worries and upheaval that comes as part of being a service family.

“Being a child in a military family comes with different priorities and pressures to a standard teenage life. Through providing additional support, having a dedicated Military Service Pupil Premium Coordinator, as well as a communications hub so that pupils can stay in touch with family stationed abroad and acknowledging the importance of days such as Remembrance Day, we strive to support their unique needs in support of achieving excellence through their education.”

For more information on Wellington Academy, visit www.thewellingtonacademy.org.uk.

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