On Friday 4th April, the charity Never Such Innocence returned to Wales to deliver a special creative workshop at Ysgol Golwg Pen Y Fan in celebration of the Month of the Military Child (MotMC). The session was led by Katie Salari and Clive Sanders from Never Such Innocence, joined by Jo, the SSCE Cymru Participation Lead Officer, who was delighted to take part in the day.
During the workshop, Service children created MotMC-themed bracelets and wrote heartfelt poetry, helping to highlight and strengthen the school’s meaningful connection with the Armed Forces community.
Never Such Innocence is a fantastic charity that runs creative competitions throughout the year. Their current MotMC competition closes on 2nd May, with finalists invited to an awards ceremony at the Ministry of Defence Main Building in London this June.
The pupils at Ysgol Golwg Pen Y Fan embraced the creative challenge with enthusiasm and care. Guided by Clive and Katie—and armed with their “poetry pencils”—the children produced imaginative and powerful pieces. The workshop was not only inspiring but also filled with creativity, with many pupils surprising themselves with their poetic voices.
A big diolch/thank you goes to Never Such Innocence, the school staff who supported the event, and of course, the wonderful pupils who took part. Clive, Katie, and Jo were warmly welcomed by the school community and had the privilege of hearing Service children share their stories and reflections.
To mark the occasion, the children’s efforts were further celebrated with invited guests including the Service children's parents. The local mayor and Lt Col. Price, the Commanding Officer of the Infantry Battle School (Brecon) kindly presented each Service child with a certificate for participating in the workshop, which made the day even more memorable.
We look forward to seeing more inspiring entries from Wales this year!
Two of the participants were later invited by the Mayor to read their poems at the Brecon Town VE Day commemorative event. Di awn, Amit and Evan!
*photos at the town event are courtesy of Captured Moments.
"Being a military child is hard, but it also gets you a lot of new experiences that I wouldn't have experienced otherwise".
Esme-Jane
"For military children they [Mount Street Junior School] do a club called Little Troopers, they've done a Remembrance service, purple up day. We celebrate Holi and Dawali".
Arushi
"My Mum is my parent that is in the Armed Forces. She is a reservist. So when I was younger it was a lot worse, she travelled around a lot. I've lived in the same house my whole life, but she has moved around me. I was in a constant cycle of saying goodbye".
Emma
"My Dad, he's in the Army and he works in the Engineers and he goes away on week days and comes back on weekends"
Emily
"Dad often goes away. It is a bit worrying not knowing where your Dad is going. It does worry me and my sister. Yeah, you just never know when he's coming home".
Joe
"In June or July, my Dad is going away quite far. He's in the Army, he's a chef. Having your Dad gone is so sad."
Josie
"I've lived in many places. So, I was born in Cyprus, after that I've been to Germany, then I went to this place called Stafford. Then another place which is Wales."
Dominic
"I've moved seven times in fourteen years."
Lilia
"Now we've got a forever home. I never have to worry about leaving or how long until I am leaving. I feel like I belong here a lot more, that's always great."
Oliver
"As soon as we get used to a house, you get moved - I’ve been to four schools and moved six times."
Aiden
"I lived in Nepal, then we went to Brunei, then Malaysia."
Ashim
"In my eyes, you have hundreds of friends in different places."
Chloe
"I’m used to moving now and mixing with the children... I’ve done it so many times, it’s just a normal thing now."
Chloe
"It's ok talking over skype and that, but sometimes you just want a hug when Dad is away."
Georgia
"He signed off last week, so he will be done by the end of this year. He’s done 24 years. I find that better because he will be around a lot. He likes watching us playing rugby, so he will get to see us more."
Lewis
"I’ve enjoyed going around to lots of places around the world, it's adventurous and exciting."
Harry
"In my eyes, you have hundreds of friends in different places."
Ieuan
"My mum got a chalk board and it says how many sleeps on it with chalk, every minute it’s getting closer for him coming home."
Mia
"I don’t want him to get promoted... I want him to get promoted but I don’t want to leave."
Oliver
"I might be going to boarding school so that I don’t change schools every few years."
Ryan
"I've been to seven different schools; I’ve not stayed put in one school long enough."
Shana
"He has been away for six months and he is back for two weeks, then he goes away again."
Sianed
"My parents were in the Army. My mum is a like a nurse and my dad went to the war in Afghanistan. I actually didn’t really know what he was doing so I was like, ‘Cool Dad, go there,’ but then I found out and thought, 'Thank God he came back alive.'"
Sanjog
"I’m going to a new place entirely. They don’t know anything about me and that’s a big restart and that’s really good for me."
Piaras
"I moved to Wales because my dad was posted in the Army. I thought I would get bullied and I was shy when you meet new people, but I made some friends."
Dan
Welsh Local Government Association
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