On Thursday 19 September, a group of Year 9 language pupils were lucky enough to join a Teams call with staff from the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). The session offered an eye-opening look at how languages play a crucial role in fighting crime and protecting national security. 

The pupils learned about the most sought-after languages, as well as how all languages train the brain to crack codes and spot patterns. Once the call was over, Year 9 pupils tried a fictional exercise to discover the time, location, and mode of transport for a drugs shipment due to arrive into the UK. They used a code to fill in a French dialogue, which they then had to translate and decode to find the answers. 

Pupils will now have the chance to enter the National Language Competition (NLC) in November, where they can put their language and codebreaking skills to the test.