A COLOURFUL procession of Devizes school district pupils marched through the streets of the town to mark the end of their Rio influenced sports week.

The nine schools in the Devizes area have been taking part in a wide range of activities to tie in with the Rio Olympics. Nearly 2,000 pupils paraded down the streets of Devizes, starting from Southbroom St James and finishing at Devizes Town Football Club.

Richard Borman, head of All Cannings School, said: “The week was superb, all of the children had a great time taking part in the activities, and then to have the big parade with athletics and the closing ceremony was great. We had Dickie Davis there who has an association with the school, he has visited before and his grandchildren attend the school. He has a background in the Olympics itself, and came along to the closing ceremony to speak.

“Andy Rolley, the Olympic swimmer, was also there to speak to the children. It is great to have these people to help inspire younger children to take an interest in sports. One little lad was walking away afterwards and I heard him say ‘that could be me one day’. And that is what it is all about.”

Head teachers from other schools in Devizes have also expressed their pride in their pupils, also noting the hard work that has been put into organising the week.

Jonathan Barber, head of Bishops Cannings School, said: “All of the 2,000 pupils have been taking part in the sporting activities over the past week. All of the credit has to go to the nine school head teachers for organising this event.

“Richard Borman, head of All Cannings and the organiser, Amy Bekker-Wrench from Chirton, Caroline Jackson from Southbroom Infants, Nigel Andrews from Southbroom St James Academy, Chris Fox from Rowde Academy, Charlotte Robinson from Wansdyke, Tim Heath from Nursteed Primary, Andrew Wilson from the Trinity CE Primary Academy and myself, have all worked very hard to put this together and it wouldn’t be possible if not for their effort.

“It has been a fantastic week and it is great to see a group of head teachers who care not only for their school but for all the children in the area.”

Full story in this week’s Gazette and Herald.