STUDENTS were urged to keep their eyes on the prize, make smart choices and never be afraid to dream by a British Olympian who joined them in their celebrations.
Olympic, European, World and Commonwealth swimmer Chris Cook spoke to a packed hall of students and parents at Haughton Academy, Darlington, for a glittering annual Year 7 and 8 awards ceremony.
Before presenting certificates for academic achievement and effort, Mr Cook said: “I had a dream when I was at school to one day represent Great Britain at the Olympic Games.
“Friends laughed at me and said no one from South Shields goes to the Olympics, but my granddad told me if you dream big and start small anything is possible.
“I trained whenever I could, worked as hard as I could and sacrificed a lot to chase that dream and it happened. So chase your own dreams and magical things could be waiting for you.”
Prizes were handed out in a range of subjects, from maths to media and science to Spanish, alongside the Year 7 Head of Year Inspirational Star Award and the Year 8 Rising Star Award, as pupils were recognised for their hard work and dedication to their studies.
Haughton Academy principal Jonathan Lumb added: “These awards are the highlight of the year and an opportunity to stop, look back and reflect on all of our pupils’ successes.
“We tell our students if they have high values, give 100 per cent effort, be on time, on side and on task they will be successful.”
Award Winners Years 7 & 8
Art - Year 7 Achievement: Freya Howitson-Morley Effort: Samuel Piers
Year 8 Achievement: Lauren Austen Effort: Charlie Crang
Computing & IT - Year 7 Achievement: Tyler Bell Effort: Felicity Neal
Year 8 Achievement: Eleanor Dallin Effort: Nicole Leonard
Design Technology - Year 7 Achievement: Emily Bell: Anthony Raimondi
Year 8 Achievement: Harriett Crawford Effort: Mia Wetherill
English - Year 7 Achievement: Annabelle Foulds Effort: Shane Briddon Year 8 Achievement: Megan Adamson Effort: Charis Bates
Food - Year 7 Achievement: Lola Robinson Effort: Bobby Wilson
Year 8 Achievement: Alisha Colquhoun Effort: Bailey Cooper
French - Year 7 Achievement: Ishaq Rahman Effort: Jessica Barber Year 8 Achievement: Rachel Lambton Effort: Katie Kaewbuakan
Geography - Year 7 Achievement: Emily Pace Effort: Sami Ali
Year 8 Achievement: Ruby Yousef Effort: Christopher Walters
History - Year 7 Achievement: Keira Brown Effort: Harrison Scott
Year 8 Achievement: Rebekah Wood Effort: Lauren Bennett
Maths - Year 7 Achievement: Ricky Chen Effort: Leon Condon
Year 8Achievement: Jake Mason Effort: Keisha Ainslie
Music - Year 7 Achievement: Holly Smith-Burns Effort: Aiya Hind-Hajoui
Year 8 Achievement: Fern Crang Effort: Merlin Towers
Religious Education - Year 7 Achievement: Tom Kipling Effort: Jamie Place
Year 8 Achievement: Harvey Parkin Effort: Louisa Beal
Science - Year 7 Achievement: Katie Hall Effort: Shelby Wellock
Year 8 Achievement: Paige Vairy Effort: Jack Middleton
Spanish - Year 7 Achievement: Gagandeep Bura Effort: Aimee Cassidy
Year 8 Achievement: Jorja Stewart Effort: Harvey Bains
Year Group - Year 7 Annabelle Foulds, Gabriel Kaddoura
Year 8 William Watt, Veronica Baillie