In April, 30 post-16 students visited the World War 1 battlefields and cemeteries of Belgium and France. The trip was organised to tie in with students’ studies of the events and poetry of WW1 and was a great success in terms of what was learned and how deeply affected the students were.
The trip began with a visit to Lijssenthoek cemetery. Students were able to see how soldiers from many different nations and backgrounds have been remembered. Mr Laing surprised many students by leading the party to a relative’s memorial and reading a particularly significant poem.
Other sites visited included:
• the Flanders Field museum in Ypres: an interactive experience in which students learned about some of the people whose lives were transformed by the conflict
• a particularly emotional observation of the ‘Last Post’ ceremony at Menin Gate
• a fascinating and detailed memorial to the South African soldiers at Delville Wood
• the Thiepval monument, a remembrance to the sacrifice of those thousands of soldiers from all over the world whose remains were never recovered.
Of particular relevance to the students was a visit to Tyne Cot cemetery, containing many memorials to soldiers from the Durham and Northumbrian regiments. This inspired several students to research their own relatives and their efforts during World War 1.
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