This Wednesday, the Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of Leeds, will present the Archbishop of York’s Young Leaders Awards to pupils at Low Moor Church of England Primary School in Bradford.

Assistant Headteacher, Sarah Marsden, says, “The Archbishop’s Young Leaders Award challenges pupils to 'be the change they want to see', so throughout the year that’s just what our Year 4 pupils have been doing. They’ve completed tasks which have helped them gain an awareness of their community and it has motivated them to take responsibility for their local, national and global communities.

"Pupils now understand that if you want a change in society to occur you need to lead by example and to take action by doing something about it . It’s a fantastic mindset to be applied to their present and future lives”.

Bishop Nick Baines says, “The children have worked hard, putting their leadership skills into action to make a difference in their local community. I look forward to presenting them with their well-earned awards.”

Sarah Marsden outlined some of the things the Year 4 pupils have done:

·  When the school raised money for the local Food Bank in Wyke, the pupils wanted to create a bigger change, so they held an assembly, got the school to donate food as well as money, wrote letters, and collected the donations and passed them on the Food Bank.

·  On a visit to Raw Nook in Low Moor, pupils were horrified by the amount of litter and wanted to improve this area of local beauty for future generations to enjoy. They picked up litter and made bird boxes which were placed in the trees (see photo) to encourage birds to nest in the area, which they hope will attract other wildlife.

·  During a topic on trade, after learning how  Fair Trade makes a difference to producers of coffee, pupils wanted to share this information with friends and family, so they invited them to a coffee afternoon where they explained the benefits of purchasing Fair Trade items.

·  They explored a range of leaders who have made a positive impact on the world through their faith and leadership . They were especially impressed by the impact Sir Titus Salt had on working conditions in the wool factories by building the village of Saltaire in Bradford.