WW1 Battlefields Trip Leaves Lasting Impression On SCA Students
Chris Prince
/ Categories: News
Two SCA students had the trip of a lifetime when they spent several days exploring the World War 1 Battlefields of Belgium and France.
The pair of Year 9s were given the opportunity after they won a competition set by our History department to write an application explaining why they wanted to go and what they would tell people from the future about the First World War.
Accompanied by Ms Obi, they spent an action-packed three days visiting some of the areas synonymous with this point in history, including the Somme, Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves cemetery, Menin Gate and Lissjenthoek Memorial Cemetery – a burial ground for the British soldiers of the Western Front.
The visit was made possible thanks to government funding that was made available to schools as part of the First World War Centenary Battlefield Tours Programme, which was setup to ensure young people never forget what happened between 1914-1918 and to keep its legacy going.
Part of the tour saw the group accompanied by a battlefield guide who was a former soldier of the British Army, while they also had the opportunity to pay their respects to those who lost their lives in the conflict. This was made even more poignant after finding the names of two local soldiers from Eccles who died in battle.
MFL Teacher Ms Obi said: “The Battlefields Tour is something we shall never forget and I would urge anyone who gets the opportunity to make the visit to this part of the world to do so. Keeping the legacy of World War 1 alive is so important and we are so grateful for the experience.
“I was incredibly proud of our students throughout the trip – the respect and good behaviour they displayed across the three days was impeccable and they are a credit to themselves and SCA.”