Children's Christmas cards for refugees and asylum seekers

Christmas can be a challenging time, but youngsters at Our Lady & St Anne's Catholic Primary School have been helping to make it brighter for refugees and asylum seekers in the North East.

The children from the Newcastle primary school, which is a member of the Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust, have been working with volunteers at the Vincent de Paul Centre, which provides support for refugee and asylum-seeking families.

​Kerry Milligan from the school explained: “I wanted the children to be more proactive this year in their charitable acts, and to gain valuable life experiences, rather than simply collecting items and not really knowing the beneficiaries.

“We asked all classes from Year 2 to Year 6 to make Christmas cards, and the children were encouraged to be as creative as possible with their designs, with every card being individual.

“The Year 5 children really gave some thought to their messages inside the cards, with the class teacher even researching greeting card messages before the children made them.”

The pupils made a total of 150 cards, which were handed out yesterday at the centre by the school’s ‘SOS’ team – a group set up when Our Lady & St Anne’s was awarded ‘School of Sanctuary’ earlier this year for its welcoming ethos and inclusivity.

Mrs Milligan continued: “The service users from the centre were all very grateful, and you could see them all comparing the designs and chatting about them during the meal.

"For some it might be the only Christmas card they get this year.

“When we told the children this, they were shocked, which made the whole experience even more significant to the children, with a lot asking if we can do this again next year.”