Students of Kirkbymoorside Community Primary School were delighted to be visited by aviation charity Fly2help and their travelling airport recently.
Pictured left to right: Jo Norwood, Positive Footprints. Charlotte Woollard, Yorkshire Housing. Pupils Isla and Erin. Kim Lewington MBE, Fly2Help.
Following an inspirational Career Conversation with an Air Traffic Controller, Positive Footprints launched a competition inviting primary school pupils to design their own airline brand, with the winners securing a visit from aviation charity, Fly2help and their travelling airport. Entries were received from across the country, with Kirkbymoorside Community Primary School pupils Isla and Erin scooping the top prize with their design Fly2TheSky.
Arriving at the school, Fly2Help helped students to become everything from baggage handlers, and security operatives to marshals and pilots. The aviation charity is dedicated to changing lives using the power and wonder of flight, with their travelling airport experience allowing children to learn about careers in aviation through role play.
Kim Lewington MBE, Aim High Programme Manager at Fly2Help said, “Fly2help are thrilled to be working with Positive Footprints and we were very excited to meet some of the children at Kirkbymoorside School.
“Our travelling airport was developed to enable all children to have an opportunity to role play travelling through an airport and boarding an aircraft but also to excite them about aviation as a potential future career. It is important to show the children the variety of jobs at airports and for them to see how inclusive the aviation industry is. Talking to primary school children with hands on fun activities will expand their minds to think of future opportunities. At Fly2help we believe if you can see it, you can be it!”
Positive Footprints offers a range of programmes to support children at different stages of their development. Customer Relationship Manager, Jo Norwood said “Children as young as seven make career decisions based on people they know and begin to form stereotypical opinions around certain careers. For some children, this can have a huge impact on their future aspirations, and they rule out certain careers before leaving primary school. We’re here to change that!”
Speaking about the programme, Year 6 teacher at Kirkbymoorside Primary School, Anna Aspery said, “The Raising Aspirations programme has completely inspired and motivated our Year 6 children. The lesson ideas are well planned and engaging, and the live career conversations have proven invaluable. After each live session, we have an in-depth discussion with any children who would like to go down that career path in the future. We have even had children completing their own activities at home after listening to one of the live conversations.
“The children were absolutely thrilled to found out that Erin and Isla had won the Fly2Help competition and that a travelling airport would be visiting our school. Not only did this opportunity completely enthral the whole school, it has also led to children saying they want to pursue this type of career when they are older.”
Schools that want to get involved with the charity and its programmes are encouraged to get in touch. Positive Footprints can help schools secure funding partners if needed, with Kirkbymoorside Primary being kindly supported by Yorkshire Housing, who are supporting 10 schools in total for the next 3 years.
Commenting on the partnership, Charlotte Woollard, Community Independence Manager at Yorkshire housing said: “I really enjoyed visiting Kirkbymoorside Primary school for the Fly2Help careers demonstration. It was fantastic to see the children so engaged and having fun whilst learning about possible careers in the aviation sector. Yorkshire Housing is proud to partner with the Positive Footprints team to raise children’s awareness of jobs and careers and help build the confidence and aspiration to go for what they want to do. We’re very happy to support the careers carousels.”
The Raising Aspirations programme provides out of the box lesson plans that help children to identify their skills, explore the world of work, and set goals for the future. During the pandemic they also launched an online series of ‘career conversations,’ interactive sessions that invite schools to hear from people working across a range of professions, getting children inspired about careers they might not have heard of, or thought would be for them. Through the sessions, children have been able to ask questions directly to doctors, athletes and soon even an applicant astronaut.
Interested schools should visit www.positivefootprints.co.uk for more information.
Photo copyright: Jonathan Pow/