Banbury school children enjoy book awards at British Library to celebrate national competition win

Hanwell Fields Community School pupils were invited to the Chartered Institute of Library and Informational Professionals Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Children’s Book Awards as one of four winning schools in a book review competition.

They created a chair to represent the story of the refugees in Nicola Davies’ novel The Day War Came, and making a ‘memory quilt’ inspired by Eric and Terry Fan’s book Ocean Meets Sky.

To support their reading, the children formed a special Kate Greenaway Club to discuss the characters, ideas and themes within the books.

At the event on June 18, the shortlisted authors spoke about their inspirations and backgrounds and the judges complimented the school’s entries in a video.

Head teacher Harry Paget-Wall Collins said: “We are very proud of the enthusiasm and commitment our pupils have shown, both in book club discussions and when it came to creating their wonderful chair and memory quilt.

"By engaging with the books in these creative ways, our children were really able to consider the feelings and journeys of the characters and think more deeply about the world around them.

"Fostering this kind of understanding and respect in our young people is all part of our commitment to deliver an education with character.”