Culture Day 2025 - An Occasion For Everyone

8 May 2025

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Culture Day was a colourful, successful and informative day!

This is the third year Priory has organised a Culture Day with Head of ICT & Computing, Mrs Qadri, leading it with help from her ‘Culture Club,’ which meet once a week.

There has been Henna hand-painting all week, music from different cultures playing at break and lunch (MaBaL), a food sale at break and pupils dressing up in their traditional cultural clothes or their national team’s sports kit. There was also a cookery masterclass held after school where pupils learnt how to make samosas and spring rolls.

Pupils were asked to donate £1 if they chose to wear their own clothes and all money raised in donations from the event will go to the Friends of Mulanje Orphans (Malawi) (FOMO). On first count, Priory has raised an amazing £400.

FOMO is a charity which runs 14 centres, caring for 2,000 orphans in Africa. The orphans are provided with food, clothes, blankets, mosquito nets, education, medical fees and most of all love and support.

Mrs Qadri said: “We pride ourselves on our diversity and vast cultural community at Priory – we have on average 15 different ethnicities and more than 20 different languages spoken.

"Celebrating our culture is important. Culture Day is always a popular day – especially the Henna tattoos!

“Having a day to celebrate our culture is something that has been requested by many of our pupils and we agree that it is extremely important for children to be proud of their identities, faiths and cultures, but also to share their background with their peers."

During Learning for Life on the Thursday, Audrey Toft, a trustee from the Culture Day’s chosen charity, Friends of Mulanje Orphans (Malawi), delivered an assembly to Year 7 about how the pupils’ donations will be used. She also asked to come in on Friday to see how our pupils celebrated and to enjoy the morning with us.

Mrs Toft said, “On behalf of FOMO I would like to thank the school for inviting me in to give a presentation about FOMO and life in Malawi. Hopefully I gave the pupils some idea of what life is like for people in Malawi, and for the orphans we support.

She went on to say, “I was very pleased with the way everyone entered into the spirit of the event on Friday morning – very colourful and enjoyable!”

Mrs Qadri, added, “We have worked with this charity previously, donating decommissioned laptops which are currently in use in Malawi”.

Not to be left out, staff were able to purchase traditional Indian food and snacks to take home, made by Mrs Qadri and her family - which were absolutely delicious!

Culture Club is every Wednesday lunchtime in HX1. Open to all year groups to attend, have some fun and meet new friends while learning about our diverse cultures.