PRIMARY school children from Snape and Thornton Watlass made a special pilgrimage to one of the oldest abbeys in Britain, taking with them crosses designed by the youngsters themselves.

The children from the Federation of Snape and Thornton Watlass Church of England Primary Schools, a joint school connecting the two villages near Bedale, did the pilgrimage from St Mary’s Church at Studley Royal to Fountain’s Abbey.

At the abbey the service ended with a candle lit prayer in the cellarium, the vaulted space where the monks ate, slept and socialised.

As part of the build up to the trip the children were asked to design their own crosses to reflect their personal and Christian values.

Teacher Diane Johnson was so impressed with what they came up with she approached Will Gore, an organiser of the Men in Sheds Groundwork Project based in Leeds who organised for two of the crosses to be made out of wood to the children’s designs, and these now have pride of place in the school hall.

The school is also celebrating after a successful Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools was carried out recently which earned them a favourable report.

Inspectors said Religious Education and the school’s curriculum promoted challenge and enjoyment for all pupils as well as developing the Christian distinctiveness of the school.