Pupils from six primary schools in Preston were special guests at Deepdale for a creative writing event with the view to inspiring the next generation.
Hosted by the Preston North End Community and Education Trust, in conjunction with its school provision, the PL Primary Stars programme, the event was a fantastic opportunity for children to express themselves through creative writing with a number of engaging workshops on offer.
Leading the event, author of ‘Football School’, Ben Lyttleton described what kind of opportunities the day presented for the children.
“We’re working together to give six different schools a really memorable day using football to encourage kids to develop a love of reading, as well as opening up the school curriculum so that they can learn about the world through subjects they would usually learn at school.
“It was a really inspirational day and it was great to see the children inspired to pick up books, and get into creative writing, and great credit to Preston North End for putting the event on for local schools who are really investing a lot in the community and using football for a force for good.”
The afternoon at Deepdale welcomed children from an array of different backgrounds with the focus on providing an inclusive afternoon of fun and learning.
Teacher, Miss Buckley who attended the day on behalf of St Pius Prepatory school said: “I was a bit concerned at first because we’ve brought a group of girls today who don’t know a lot about football and they don’t play football, however, they’ve really enjoyed it and really engaged with it which is fabulous to see.
“It’s been really good because it hasn’t just been about football, it’s been around the subject but it’s mainly about being creative and how football can be seen in so many different ways and our girls are so engaged with it. They’ve enjoyed the atmosphere from today and really enjoyed learning.”
In comparison, Mrs Parkinson from St Joseph’s primary school spoke about the impact the afternoon had on the boys adding: ”It just goes to show that it doesn’t have to be all about football."
“There was lots of other stories that surround it and the author has written lots of lifestyle stories which are football based and anybody can engage with that. Boys in general don’t engage with literacy, they’re more mathematically minded so to get the writing we’ve got out of them today is really interesting.”
Hear more thoughts from teachers throughout the day as well as a full round up on the day by watching the video on iFollow above.