Character & Belonging at HACH
At HACH we exist for 2 reasons: for great achievement and for good character.
"Character education can be broadly described as an approach to developing a set of values, attitudes, skills and behaviours that are thought to support young people’s development and contribute to their success in school and in adult life. These qualities include respect, leadership, motivation, resilience, self-control, self-confidence, social and emotional skills, and communication skills."
(Education Endowment Foundation, 2016)
With the research in mind, we have carefully selected 5 character traits around which to centre our character education at HACH. They are:
- Confidence: the faith in our ability to meet our goals and shape our futures
- Grit: resilience, hard work and determination in our work.
- Kindness: proactive, thoughtful actions and words to help others.
- Responsibility: the acceptance that we are accountable for our actions.
- Zest: an approach to a life filled with excitement and energy.
At HACH we know that character education can make all the difference to the opportunities a child has in their future:
“Employers want similar things. They emphasise what might be called ‘applied’ character traits – skills of the workplace like speaking, listening and teamwork. Adaptability in the face of disruptive change features too. Character education experts, the Jubilee Centre at the University of Birmingham, talk of ‘performance virtues’ like resilience and leadership. And although there can be definitional disagreements, in practice you find broad consensus amongst educators, experts and employers of the need to develop certain key personal attributes that set young people up for the future.”
(Social Market Foundation, SMF, 2024)
We use a shared language when we talk about our character traits.
Confidence
We say: “I’ve got this”
Grit
We say: “Growing up means showing up”
Kindness
We say: “We choose kindness, even when its hard”
Responsibility
We say: “We are masters of our own destiny.”
Zest
We say: “Bring the energy.”
In 2024 HACH introduced a House System to further embed our character traits and foster a stronger sense of community and belonging across year groups.
Our 5 houses each represent a character trait with their names in Latin to celebrate the inclusion of this language in our curriculum.
Across its inaugural year the house system went from strength to strength; we are proud of the way staff and students embraced their house community and we look forward to where these houses will take us next!