February 2026: Westminster Children’s University Update
Hello WCU Families!
I was so pleased and grateful to see our community thrive as we move into February 2026. January marked an incredible start to the year, demonstrating how WCU provides inclusive, wellbeing-focused opportunities for children and families across Westminster.
Our Winter Camp brought together 65 children and 20 parents for trips to Zootropolis, Kew Gardens, Topsy Turvy Theatre, and Kensington Palace. These experiences gave students access to cultural and creative spaces while building confidence, social skills, and a sense of belonging. Paired with inclusive food projects, these activities reinforced emotional regulation, family connection, and positive routines, directly supporting WCU’s wellbeing and SEND-inclusive aims.
On January 29th, Year 5 and 6 students joined their peers from St Augustine’s to see the English National Opera’s HMS Pinafore at the London Coliseum. Experiencing this Olivier-nominated production with Mel Giedroyc’s wit allowed children to engage with live performance and classical theatre, increasing cultural capital and promoting joy, curiosity, and shared learning—key pillars of WCU enrichment.
We are especially proud of QP Year 6, whose three students won the ENO Poster Competition. They received certificates and a talk from Georgia Gould MP. This achievement celebrates creativity, academic engagement, and confidence, demonstrating how WCU initiatives encourage students to take pride in their accomplishments and participate meaningfully in cultural projects.
WCU attended Bett 2026, where we explored new educational resources to strengthen literacy and wellbeing. We are thrilled that Wordsmith will be visiting our schools to support both actual and emotional literacy, ensuring children develop key skills for learning and emotional self-regulation in line with WCU’s developmental priorities. Wordsmith, whose initiative promotes both actual and emotional literacy in schools, equips students with the vocabulary and communication strategies to understand and express emotions effectively, supporting wellbeing, social skills, and learning readiness. In 2026, they will be visiting our WCU schools to embed these approaches, helping children develop confidence in emotional expression, enhance peer relationships, and strengthen engagement with literacy-based learning, fully aligned with WCU’s focus on whole-child development and family-school-community wellbeing.
We were delighted to meet representatives from CH Lin Buddhist Primary School (China) at the KittenBot stand during Bett 2026. They shared innovative STEAM and STEM projects focused on pest management, giving our students insight into creative problem-solving and global approaches to science and technology. We are excited to develop international collaboration with them in 2026, including pen-pal exchanges and shared projects, fostering cross-cultural learning and broadening our students’ horizons in line with WCU’s goals of curiosity, global awareness, and STEM engagement.
The QP Art Club launched a new WCU initiative to display student-led A4 canvases across the school. This whole-school project fosters creativity, leadership, and pride, allowing students to express themselves while promoting a visually inspiring environment. In 2026, we plan to expand this project across the WCU network, reinforcing collaboration between schools and celebrating student voices city-wide.
Adults at QP and Hallfield have completed training in Compassion-Based Therapy, and in 2026 more staff will become accredited in trauma-aware, Thrive-informed, solution-focused therapy approaches. This professional development strengthens relational practice, emotional support, and wellbeing provision for children, aligning with WCU’s goals of sustainable, whole-family wellbeing and inclusion.
We have also received funding for an Electrical Safety and Neuroscience project, building on our MindUp work. This initiative encourages curiosity, STEM engagement, and mental health awareness, reflecting WCU’s commitment to combining enrichment with learning about physical and emotional wellbeing.
Our Naturehood Watch project with the Floating Classroom continues to flourish, with students participating in the Big Garden Birdwatch. Recording birds in gardens, parks, and window ledges fosters mindfulness, environmental stewardship, and citizen science skills. Such activities enhance connection with nature, promote observation and recording skills, and support wellbeing through hands-on, outdoor learning.
Looking ahead to February half-term (Feb 11–21), London is packed with WCU-approved activities. The Southbank Centre Imagine Festival offers relaxed, sensory-friendly, and BSL-interpreted events for children of all ages. From Early Weaves dance theatre and CBeebies Wildlife Jamboree to Mini SPIN, Pop-Up Parkour, and author events with Liz Pichon and Jacqueline Wilson, there is an extraordinary range of opportunities for creative expression, confidence-building, and cultural enrichment.
Term 2 of DreamArts Experiment continues at City of Westminster College. Students aged 6–12 are devising and performing their own musicals, while older students are creating immersive theatre with Les Enfants Terribles along the Paddington Canal. These projects develop collaboration, creativity, communication, and leadership skills while strengthening links between schools, WCU, and the wider community.
From opera to citizen science, STEAM collaboration to creative arts, WCU continues to provide inclusive, engaging, and wellbeing-focused experiences. Each activity reinforces our mission to empower children, strengthen family and school partnerships, and foster lifelong curiosity, resilience, and connection to the world around them.
Stay curious, keep exploring, and we look forward to seeing you at our events and clubs this February!
— The WCU Team 🎓✨