Oasis Academy Sholing Wins National Wickes Wellbeing Challenge 2024!

A team of Year 9 students from Oasis Academy Sholing have been named national champions of the Wickes Wellbeing Challenge 2024! The grand final took place on Tuesday 12th November, at Wickes’ headquarters in Watford, where they competed against 13 other schools from across the country.

The winning team, Charlotte, Elijah, Elliot, Harriet and Hannah, spent the past month developing and refining their wellbeing ideas. Their hard work and creativity paid off as they impressed the judges and took the top spot.

The Wickes Wellbeing Challenge encourages students to transform an underused space in their school into an area that promotes physical, mental, or emotional wellbeing. The team’s winning idea was to create a "Zen Garden" at Oasis Academy Sholing, designed to be a peaceful, sensory-friendly retreat for neurodiverse students who may feel overwhelmed.

Since launching in September, over 2,000 students from 14 schools across the UK have participated, with guidance from Wickes staff. As winners, the students from Oasis Academy Sholing will receive £2,000 in Wickes products to bring their Zen Garden to life!

Principal Martin Brown shared his pride, saying: “I’m so proud of our students. Their creativity, teamwork, and commitment to improving wellbeing in our school are amazing. We can’t wait to see their design come to life!”

Oasis Academy Don Valley also participated in the challenge and made the top 6 for the grand finale, placing 2nd! The students were also privileged to have a tour and session exploring apprenticeships with Wickes. The group is now preparing to pitch their ideas to senior leaders.

Well done to everyone who took part!