PUPILS of three schools in the Cheshire West area are giving their communities something to smile about during the coronavirus pandemic by making their own school newsletters.

Children at Upton Heath, Clutton and Little Sutton C of E Primary Schools have been providing the content for their respective school's community newsletter, which is read by pupils, parents, governors and the wider community.

At Upton Heath Primary School, children have shared their rainbows, limericks, poems, messages of hope, prayers, pictures of their weekly PE with Joe Wicks sessions and ideas for games to play at home like the selfie scavenger hunt.

One pupil at Upton Heath created her own article to feature in the newsletter, based on home learning that asked pupils to write an unusual news story based on their school.

The story of a waterpark at the new Upton Heath Primary School, complete with splash park and water slides, featured ‘comments’ from the school parliament, teachers and headteacher Conrad North.

Children also shared new ways they have found to keep in touch in the Upton Heath newsletter takeover.

An Upton Heath Primary School parent said: “Pine Cones reception class are sending a letter, note or picture to each other weekly. So each week they send and receive something to and from a different member of the class.

"It’s a great way of staying in touch which they are really enjoying.”

They may be at home, but pupils at Clutton Primary School are still getting ready for Easter and have filled their newsletter takeover with pictures of Easter cards and eggs they have created.

Pupils recreated their regular forest school sessions at home, with pictures of them toasting marshmallows in the garden.

As the children will be missing their usual Easter service, Reverend Scurr from St Mary’s Church in Coddington wrote a letter to the children and gave them ideas of how to celebrate Easter at home, such as lighting a candle and creating an Easter card.

Over at Little Sutton Primary School, pupils shared prayers they had written themselves, ideas for staying fit, science experiments and creative home learning.

Little Sutton Primary School’s donations to the West Cheshire Foodbank were also celebrated in their newsletter takeover.

Families had brought in donations to the food bank on the last day that school was open to all pupils.

The food donations were later collected by Justin Madders MP and delivered to the West Cheshire Food Bank.

Executive principal of Little Sutton and Clutton C of E Primary Schools Zoe Carciero said: “Our newsletters are normally created by school, but given the extraordinary circumstances we are in, we thought this was the perfect opportunity to hand control of our newsletters over to our pupils.

"They have risen to the challenge superbly. Staff are really missing seeing the children each day, and it is giving us all a lift to see what the children are doing at home.”

Upton Heath, Clutton and Little Sutton C of E Primary Schools are all part of The Samara Trust, a multi academy trust founded in March 2018.