A CENTRE which will allow students to benefit from global education has been opened at Haygrove School.

The Yew Wah - Haygrove International Friendship Centre was opened on Thursday (November 14) as a dedicated teaching and learning space for students from China, who visit the school every year.

The centre extends the Modern Foreign Languages Centre built at the school in 2005; Haygrove is a centre for excellence in the subject and has educational links with many countries, including China.

The school has been working with the Yew Wah International Education Foundation, which provides education for Chinese nationals, and this year saw Mandarin introduced into the curriculum.

Haygrove head teacher Karen Canham said: “The Yew Wah students come to experience an English education and I firmly believe that their presence in our school enhances further the educational experience of our own students, and is of great value to all at Haygrove School.”

Key speakers at the event included Bridgwater MP Ian Liddell-Grainger, Dr Gary Morrison, Yew Wah International Education Foundation and Dr Mary Hayden, Department of Education for the University of Bath.

Mr Ian Liddell-Grainger emphasised the importance of international links to the Bridgwater economy and the value of the work being done at Haygrove School to encourage young people to understand and respect other cultures. 

The ceremonial ribbon was cut by Mr Liddell-Grainger and Dr Gary Morrison to formally open the new centre, surrounded by specially invited guests and students from both Haygrove School and the Yew Wah International School in Shanghai.

Guest speaker Dr Mary Hayden said: “International education and the promotion of intercultural understanding are no longer the preserve of the globally mobile, but are crucial to us all.”

Dr Hayden went on to congratulate the school for “forging this pioneering relationship with Yew Wah” and applauded the opening of the International Friendship Centre which “demonstrates what can be achieved when people work together with a shared goal.”