Through our weekly Lecture series, Sixth Form students have access to an exceptional range of speakers, widening horizons, developing empathy and understanding other people’s lives, as well as learning about the breath of choices and opportunities ahead.
Organised by Mrs Karen Paddock, this term’s first lectures included presentations from CFT award recipients and charity leader Helen Evans. The programme also provides opportunities for students to present as well as write articles after a lecture – all vital skills for their lives ahead.
CFT award recipients share their stories
The 2026 lecture series opened on a high note with three captivating presentations from Upper Sixth students who, with financial support from Calne Foundation Trust, undertook their own journeys of exploration.
The first presentation from Florence and Alison shared their experience of volunteering at a centre for children with severe learning disabilities in Vietnam. They described how their interests in medicine and psychology helped them decide where to volunteer and how the experience impacted their approach to university courses. They shared more about their interests in mental health and teaching, as well as describing how beneficial the experience was in pushing them out of their comfort zones and volunteering in a foreign country. As well as volunteering, Florence and Alison explored Ho Chi Minh City, making the most of the beautiful countryside and diverse culture and, of course, the delicious food. They also gave a helpful in-depth view about how to apply for funding and making the most of the opportunities available.
Kit and Sophie followed by presenting their two-week trip to Senegal, where they volunteered at a school teaching maths, as well as going to two orphanages, Association La Joie Des Enfants and La Pouponniere, where they looked after young, orphaned children. They highlighted the challenges of speaking French with the children and adults, and Spanish with the other volunteers, as well as being pushed out of their comfort zones on many occasions when put in charge of dozens of young children. They said how enjoyable and rewarding the experience was, especially the friendships they made with the people they volunteered with.
Millie spoke last, presenting about her time volunteering at an NHS Hospital in Basingstoke, which offered an in-depth week consisting of various talks about different medical specialties, doing practical work, observing theatres and learning about pharmaceutical and physical therapy care. She spoke about how interesting and inspiring the experience was, as it gave her more insight into the enormous spectrum of medical specialties available. She highlighted how fun and rewarding it was, particularly meeting new people with common interests who shared similar passions and aspirations to enter the medical field.
Ellie, who wrote this article on the student presentations added, ‘These inspiring stories showcase the incredible opportunities available to students and the lasting impact of stepping outside their comfort zones.’
Well done and thank you to Ellie too.
Charity CEO inspires with stories of perseverance and female empowerment
On Tuesday evening, we were delighted to be invited to attend a lecture with award-winning autistic whistleblower and charity leader, Helen Evans.
Before the lecture, we had the opportunity to have supper with her and talk to her in more depth about parts of her work that she was not able to cover in her lecture, learning more about Cavernoma Alliance UK, where she is CEO. Our current UVI Heads of Charity, May and Clemmie, were able to share and discuss the charity work and fundraising that they have done at Calne and learn about how this is done on a bigger scale at a charity like Helen’s. It was also very interesting, especially for those of us studying biology and psychology, to hear about the gene therapy research currently being done about the rare disease Cavernoma.
During her lecture, Helen shared her inspiring story of perseverance and female empowerment in the aid sector. It was extremely eye-opening to learn about some of the issues still prevalent within the aid sector, such as in organisations like Oxfam, which are usually well-respected and admired by the public. Hearing Helen’s determination to bring about justice for victims in such vulnerable situations, especially as a woman and someone who has struggled with autism throughout her life, was extremely motivating. She also spoke about research showing there may be correlation between autism and whistleblowing, due to the tendency of some people with autism to strive for social justice, which not often talked about and so was extremely intriguing.
A huge thank you to Helen for taking time to come and speak to us. It was very empowering for all of us. Her journey taught us that we should always strive to make a difference and try to work in a field that fulfils us.
Ellie and Amelia, both Upper Sixth
