On Thursday, Fressingfield Primary School took 30 children on a fantastic visit to the Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Ipswich. This special place of worship sits at the heart of a Sikh community several hundred strong in Ipswich and the surrounding areas. Our children, who were eager to find out about Sikhism and the role of the Gurdwara, were given a warm welcome to this special place by two of the congregation and the Granthi – the equivalent of a priest who is the custodian of the Guru Granth Sahib (the religious scriptures of the Sikhs).

On arrival, we were invited in and asked to remove our shoes and wash our hands as a mark of respect. Having done so, the children proceeded to the main room for services and worship which houses the Guru Granth Sahib on a golden altar. The children sat in respectful and attentive silence as Avtar and Paaji explained how Sikhs worship, the importance of the Guru Granth Sahib, how to wear a turban, the significance of the ‘five Ks’ (the religious symbols and practices adopted by baptised Sikhs) and the role of service and food as part of their beliefs. Afterwards, the children had time and space to explore more closely, ask further questions and sketch things of interest to them. The staff and hosts were really impressed with the children’s excellent, respectful behaviour.

We are so grateful to the Sikh community of Ipswich, and to Avtar and Paaji in particular, for giving our children such a memorable and positive experience. It is so important for children in our community to have such positive encounters with diversity so they can develop values of tolerance and respect and be prepared for life in modern Britain.

Following last year’s success on the rugby field, two teams from Fressingfield set off with high hopes for similar results in this years High Suffolk Schools Sports Partnership Tag Rugby Competition at Thomas Mills this afternoon. Unfortunately, despite some fantastic teamwork, and a whole heap of passion and determination, the teams found results hard to come by this time around.

Despite this, both teams remained really upbeat and high-spirited throughout the afternoon and absolutely determined in each match. As a result, all the players had positively enjoyable afternoons.

The ‘Compete’ team, comprising Harriet, James, Imogen, Eden, Jayden, Rory, Sophia, Archie, Stanley, Ella, Isaac and Edward lost four matches before winning their final match against Debenham. I was so impressed with the teamwork: Harriet was a fantastic block, brilliant at last-minute, try-saving tags; Isaac was brilliant at getting himself into space right on the line; James, Imogen, Jayden and Rory scored following some epic teamwork moments; Archie and Edward were great at nipping in and out of the opposition and heading for the line; and Ella, Sophia, Stanley and Eden each contributed with their tagging and passing skills. Together, they worked extremely well as a team and every game was competitive throughout.

The ’Develop’ team – Luke, Bonnie, Emily, Harry, Caleb, Emily, India, Daniel, Dexter, Oliver, Lenny and Sol – also came up against tough opposition and, as India and Daniel seemed delighted to tell me, they, “lost every one of our matches, and the last one was 15-2!” Despite the whitewash, Mrs Hall and the supporting parents were really impressed by the team’s energy, commitment and teamwork. Well, these are the qualities we value at Fressingfield, so I would like to say a huge well done and thank you to every player for representing our school so well this afternoon.

Many thanks to Caleb, Jayden, James and Emily who organised a fantastic, high-energy assembly on the theme of Choosing Respect.  It included sorting odd socks, making the word RESPECT from different letters and thinking about respecting those who may struggle with friendships.  Well done, Red Caps!