More than 600 Year 6 pupils from across Bradford Diocesan Academies Trust (BDAT) came together at the University of Bradford Stadium to celebrate the culmination of a four-year school linking journey that has helped children build lasting friendships across different schools, communities and backgrounds.
Delivered in partnership with The Linking Network, the programme intentionally pairs schools serving different communities, giving pupils the opportunity to meet children whose experiences, backgrounds and beliefs may differ from their own.
Throughout the programme, pupils were paired with another BDAT school, exchanging letters, asking one another “curiosity questions”, meeting through video calls and visiting each other’s schools. Along the way, they explored BDAT’s values of Compassion, Aspiration, Resilience, and Excellence, exploring what these values mean in practice and how they can be demonstrated in everyday life. Through these values, the children engaged with themes such as identity and belonging, while working together on social action projects to make a positive difference in their local communities.
The event also supported the launch of The National Conversation: Next Generation, a UK-wide initiative encouraging children and young people to share their views on community, belonging and connection.
The day included performances, celebrations of pupils’ achievements and opportunities for linked schools to come together one final time before pupils move on to secondary school.
Reflecting on their experience, Konayn and Arya, from East Morton C of E Primary School, said: “Through the Linking Schools project, we have learnt how to make friends with people from different backgrounds and communities. I think it will help us as we move on to secondary school and give us more confidence when talking to new people.”
While Paige from Clayton St Johns C of E Primary School, also commented: “Linking Schools has taught me that everyone is different and that these differences are positive. We don’t have to have the same beliefs or like the same things – you need to be who you are and that’s what makes the world a brighter place.”
Carol Dewhurst OBE, Chief Executive Officer of Bradford Diocesan Academies Trust, said:
“We are incredibly proud of what our pupils have achieved through the Linking Schools programme. Over the past four years, they have built friendships across different schools and communities, broadened their understanding of one another and developed important life skills such as curiosity and critical thinking.
“Today’s celebration recognises not only everything that our young people have accomplished, but also the important contribution their experiences and perspectives can make to The National Conversation: Next Generation. Their voices deserve to be heard, and we’re proud they are helping shape discussions about the future of community life.”
Linda Cowie, co-director of The Linking Network said:
“It was an absolute delight seeing over 600 Year 6 pupils from all BDAT primary schools coming together to reflect on their Schools Linking journey.
“We know that this work is needed more than ever and the children demonstrated this powerfully when they spoke about the impact of the programme. This was an opportunity for pupils to have their voices heard and to exchange ideas on their experiences. The children reflected on the question, ‘How do we all live well together’ and their ideas were transformed into a poem by local poet, Haris Ahmed.
“We’d like to thank BDAT and all the teachers who have worked so hard to give their children such a unique and positive experience of our Schools Linking programme.”
The Linking Schools programme encourages pupils to explore identity, recognise both similarities and differences, and learn from one another through shared activities and conversations. By sharing stories about their lives, discussing their beliefs and communities and working together on local projects, pupils developed friendships while gaining a better understanding of the experiences of others.
The celebration gave pupils the opportunity to reflect on their journey together before moving on to secondary school, while showcasing how schools across Bradford are helping young people build friendships beyond their own communities and preparing them to thrive in an increasingly diverse society.
The event was also the largest National Linking Schools Advisory Group gathering to date.