St Mary's Church of England School
Nurturing Creative Thinkers

Year 4 residential to Rochdale and Manchester

We had a fantastic over-night stay in Manchester with two days filled with amazing experiences.

We had a very full and informative workshop at the Neeli (Blue) Mosque in Rochdale lead by Samar.  We then enjoyed a walk along the canal to our partner school, St Peter’s CE Primary School.  The children had a great time chatting and making friends.

After that, our new friends took us to their church, St Peter’s CE, Newbold, where they helped us learn about the building, the special windows and the songs they sing (see their photos and information here).  After we joined them back at school to say goodbye, we headed in to the sights and sounds of central Manchester.

Our Youth Hostel was absolutely fantastic, as were the meals – something for everyone!

We had an evening stroll out and were amazed by the huge buildings and developments going on all around as we made our way to the Manchester Art Gallery.  Mrs Day helped us learn about the different paintings and what they represented, before we looked at several galleries, including one where we could make our own art – a great way to finish a very long day!

After a good night’s rest (even if bed time was a little bit later than we are used to!), a superb breakfast and a quick clean of our rooms, we headed off to Media City on the Salford Quays.  Here we found Made2Move4Macmillan, who were offering cycling opportunities with Team GB cycling coaches, as well as rolling road racing challenges.  Everyone enjoyed it, especially the ‘taxi’ service from one side of the plaza to the other!

We then made it to Imperial War Museum North where we were the first group to experience their new challenge, involving wireless earphones, the Ministry for Memories and  time critical mission – all-in-all, very exciting!

It was then time to return home and head off for a well deserved, and needed, rest! Well done everyone; you were fabulous representatives for St Mary’s and did the school proud.