The Thomas Gainsborough School is a large, highly successful secondary academy located in Great Cornard, Sudbury. The school is now a titan academy, with over 1500 students forming our community. In addition to our broad, vibrant curriculum, our school is known for being outward looking, forging partnerships with outside providers, business and other partners and developing opportunities for our students beyond the curriculum, exemplifying our motto 'Excellence for each, for all'.  We are an Artsmark platinum school, in recognition of our outstanding work in the creative arts and our commitment to working with creative partners beyond our school. This year we have made it a priority to also become more inward looking, reflecting on the unique characteristics and heritage of the area we serve and what makes the school and its young people who they are. This work has lead to new programmes in school, and has also lead us to get involved in the 'Sudbury silk stories' project, which has enabled us to delve into the silk heritage of the town and the lasting impact it has had on its character. The project has allowed our young people to engage in the recording of oral histories, interview with people who have worked in the silk trade and broadened their understanding of Sudbury's heritage. During this process, we have also become a heritage school through Historic England, and look forward to the opportunity to connect further with our local history and heritage in the future.