All smiles as Hathershaw students celebrate another special year

Hathershaw College has hosted its annual Prize Presentation Evening at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in Oldham town centre.

This was to celebrate another year of success and group achievement.

Students were rewarded for their hard work and excellence in what has proven to be a very trying and challenging year.

It was a night of celebration and joy, a chance for students to feel proud and for the school to award their hard work and dedication.

The class of 2024 started their secondary school lives in September 2019, a few months before their education was disrupted by Covid in March 2020, which meant that they didn’t return to the classroom until September of that year, only to be met with another enforced closure of schools in January 2021 which kept them out of school until March.

As well as the enforced closures, there were of course periods of self-isolation as a result of contact tracing.

It is fair to say that through no fault of their own, this cohort of students didn’t have the best start to secondary school life, leaving them with lots of gaps in their subject knowledge as well as having been isolated from their friends and unable to experience everything that school has to offer in terms of educational visits and extra-curricular activities.

A total of 200 students were invited to be rewarded for their hard work, attendance and excellence on the night; they consisted of current Year 8-11 and last year’s school leavers.

This was the 13th year of the Prize Presentation Evening. 

Mark Giles, Hathershaw’s Principal, said: "This annual event is a fantastic way to celebrate our collective success, ranging from students who have provided support to their community alongside the usual prizes for effort, progress and achievement. 

"It is a really inclusive event and also an opportunity to thank parents, carers and of course our wonderful staff for their support. 

"As part of the reading culture we are fostering at Hathershaw, all prize winners will celebrate their success with a book, the choice of which reflects what their award is for. 

"The Queen Elizabeth Hall is a great venue for the evening in the heart of the town we all work hard to support.”

Special awards included: 

Pinnacle English Award: Munal Ovais

Pinnacle Maths Award: Amelia O’Connor

Roshni Panchani Art Award: Syed Ihsaan Ali

OSFC Prize: Aleeza Ali

Outstanding Results: Munal Ovais

Oldham College Prize: Liyaa Patel

Nigel Marland Award for Endeavour: Mohammed Abdul Hafiz

Colin Bell Vocational Award: Emma Whitehouse

Zakir Maroof Business Enterprise Award: Sana Manoor

Ron Scholes Science Award: Sharmili Fatema

Hasan Umar Award for Courage Through Adversity: Thomas Doherty

For Housing Special Recognition Award: Holly Norris

Ibrahim Shahid Award for Commitment to Physical Activity: Charlie Rowan

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