Samworth Church Academy opened its doors to the local community for its annual Christmas Community Lunch.

Visitors were welcomed and served by representatives of the Academy’s Combined Cadet Force (CCF) and, after the meal, were treated to a glittering rendition of the musical The Wizard of Oz by performing arts students.

Visitor Ann Hurt said she enjoyed the day: “I heard about the event through my grandchildren and I wanted to support the school. I have come with my friend Margaret and we think it’s lovely that they have welcomed us into school.”

Margaret Ball agreed: “I think it’s a great idea to get the community to come in to school. I think the cadets who served us did very well, they were all very polite.”

Visitor Christine Jarvis was a return visitor, saying: “My granddaughter is a student here and told me about the lunch. In fact, I have been for the past four years and I have always enjoyed it.

“The students are always lovely, and I think it’s nice that the school throws its doors open to the community. I think also that mixing the generations is great for helping us to talk to each other and looking at our different perspectives on life. We learn from them, and hopefully they learn from us.”

Marianna Bule (Year 10) is a member of the Combined Cadet Force (CCF) and served at the lunch. “I love speaking to the visitors and have found it really interesting. I think it’s great for people to come into school and meet us and this sort of event shows that teenagers have a lot to offer,” she said.

“We have talked about the school and my experience of being in the cadets, and they have told me about themselves too. I have really enjoyed it.”

Harrison Kerkhof (Year 10) is also in the CCF and said: “It’s a bit nerve wracking to meet and serve strangers and I know it can take a while to adapt to a new situation. But once you get to talking to new people, any nerves will go.

“I think it is good for teenagers like me to be able to meet older generations because on the news you hear so much about my age group not acting so well.

“Hopefully, this type of event will help to change that mindset and show that there are lots of teenagers who are trying to do things well. We are here to serve drinks and make sure everyone is comfortable and have everything they need. Also, perhaps we might get lucky and get some cake too!”

Samworth Church Academy principal Lisa McVeigh said she always looked forward to the event. “It is fantastic for us as an academy to welcome our friends and neighbours from the community in to share some Christmas cheer with us,” she added.

“Our ethos has a strong thread of service and this meal is a great opportunity for our students to be of service to our neighbours. We want to thank everyone who attended, and to our staff for creating such lovely food for our visitors, and to the students for making it such a special day.”