Heckmondwike youngsters celebrate most successful sporting year

Holy Spirit under 11 Spen Valley Cup winners

Holy Spirit Catholic Primary Academy pupils’ achievements rank as the best in the school’s history

Children at the Heckmondwike school, on Bath Road, have excelled in a wide-range of sporting activities during the 2021-2022 academic year.

The school says it has an active policy of ensuring pupils who want to participate in sport receive the chance to do so, which has resulted in a host of trophies being won and youngsters being introduced to a healthy lifestyle.

Joe Ratcliffe, who teaches PE at the school, said: “We enter absolutely everything just to give the children as many chances as possible to represent the school.

Holy Spirit under 11 Spen Valley Gala winners

“We then want them to go out and join a local sports club, continue on the sports path and have a healthy lifestyle.

“All of the children are super keen to represent school. When we do surveys, it is right at the top!”

The success stories include the under 11s boys football team winning the Spen Valley Cup and the Trust Gala, ensuring a two-year unbeaten record; the under 11s girls football team being crowned North Kirklees champions; Year 5 and 6 pupils winning the North Kirklees Sportshall Athletics championship, with the same age group being crowned the North Kirklees Orienteering champions, whilst gold medals were claimed for Years 1 and 2 and 5 and 6 pupils at the Commonwealth Games.

The school also received recognition from the School Games Mark - a Government led awards scheme which rewards schools for their commitment to the development of sporting competition - for the fifth consecutive year.

Holy Spirit North Kirklees girls football champions

Headteacher John Cooper was full of praise for his pupils and their parents, whilst also thanking Mr Ratcliffe. He said: “It’s a culmination of years’ of concerted effort. We are dead lucky because the parents are willing and support us. It is a partnership. Everybody buys in and the parents really value and appreciate it as well.

“We are very lucky to have him (Mr Ratcliffe). He is not very good at blowing his own trumpet. He is brilliant at engaging with other local schools and he may run two games at the same time, meaning that loads of kids get a chance and that is what it is about.

“We want the kids to be lifelong participants in sport.”