Staff and pupils at St Stephen’s Primary School in Bath were delighted to unveil their brand-new library with the help of popular children’s author Anthony Burt.
Anthony, who has penned pupil favourites such as The Animal Lighthouse and The Wish Fish, did the honours of cutting the official red ribbon to open the wonderful new asset to the school.
The new library has been a while in the making. Pupils and parents worked very hard for over four years to raise thousands of pounds for the new room through a variety of activities such as bake sales, sponsored events and fetes.
The school’s former library, although very well loved and well-used, was much smaller and windowless. The bright, welcoming space at the very front of the school also boasts a wooden reading nook where pupils can settle down with their pals and their favourite book, comfy padded seats and a mural celebrating the school’s values of Joy, Creativity, Love and Courage.
“It’s been an absolute honour to open the new library for St Stephen’s and to meet so many of the pupils,” said Anthony. “The love of reading within the school is obvious and I really enjoyed listening to what pupils enjoy about reading and how they will use their time in the sparkling new library.”
Anthony stayed at the school for the whole day, spending time with each year group and delivering a workshop which covered subjects as diverse as orangutans and pirates!
Library Lead at St Stephens, Nicola Renwick, added, “It was an absolute pleasure to have Anthony visit our school. He really got the children’s creative ideas flowing and we couldn’t have asked for a better way to celebrate the opening of the library.”