Pride 2026

 

https://metro.co.uk/2026/06/04/londons-reform-council-cancels-pride-flag-ceremony-28633976/

What do you see in the picture, where are they, what are they doing, what do you think this story is about?

This picture was taken at Birmingham Pride last weekend.

What is Pride? Why do people go on Pride events, who is it for?

(pupils may say Pride is for everyone, which is true, but ask what it is specifically for. Is it about racism, for example? What are the four or five letters you often hear when talking about Pride and what do they stand for - LGBTQ+) 

There are Pride events every year in many cities around the world. Thousands of people march, wave flags and celebrate acceptance and freedom to be who they are.

Birmingham City Council flew the rainbow flag above the Council House and the library lit up in rainbow colours over the weekend.

Why do that? What is the council trying to show residents of Birmingham in 2026?

Some councils in the UK have banned Pride flags in public buildings this year. In Havering, East London, for example, the council office has flown a Pride flag during Pride month every year, but this year they will not. They have also told libraries to "scale back" pride celebrations. They say only the Union jack and St George's cross can be flown from public buildings.

What do you think about this decision?

What do you think some residents in Havering did in response?

Some residents in Havering held their own Pride event in the local park where they waved flags and had a picnic. One person said, "We can't change their decision but we can choose to be more direct in our efforts."

What does "being more direct" mean?

You could argue there's no point in doing this as the decision can't be changed. What do you think?

In your opinion, did the residents do the right thing, are they breaking the law?

The Havering council leader explained the reason the council do not feel they need to fly the Pride flag; "The union (jack) flag represents our country and as such is inclusive of all our residents."

Can you see both sides of this argument?

What is your opinion?

Some people might argue in 2026 we don't need Pride events anyway. What are the arguments for and against this argument?

In a statement, Birmingham City Council said, "Pride helps create a city where everyone can live without fear and prejudice."

Why do some people live with fear and prejudice?

Why do you think Birmingham Council thinks a Pride event can help?

How do we make sure in our school there is no fear and prejudice - what can we do about that?

Why is this about No Outsiders?

Which British value is this about?

Do you want this assembly as a power point with Oracy sentence stems? To join the free mailing list and receive these assemblies as power points every week, email me on a.moffat@excelsiormat.org

No Outsiders: We belong here by Andrew Moffat  (scheme of work for primary schools) 

Andrew Moffat delivers in-school No Outsiders training- watch a short video here 

Register to be a No Outsiders school  (get access to members page with additional resources)

Watch CPD films showing schools teaching belonging

Cheese rolling

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c98rrde2d9no

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz024gnm9z4o

What do you see in the picture, what is happening, where are they, what do you think the story is here?

An annual event that is an old English tradition was held last week on a hill in Gloucestershire. The picture shows the competitors joining the event. They are chasing something down a steep hill. 

Can you see what they are chasing? The small object is in the picture at the front.

The photo shows the annual cheese rolling event on Coopers Hill in Brockworth. A wheel of Double Gloucester cheese is rolled down the hill and after a one second start, runners chase it. The winner is the first person to cross the finish line at the bottom of the hill. The cheese can reach speeds of 70 mph and no one in the race ever actually catches the cheese, but the winner gets to take it home.

What do you think of this traditional race?

The annual event has been held for at least 500 years, possibly 600. No one really knows how it started . Some believe it was started to encourage a good harvest. It is thought when the event was first held, villagers would roll a burning wheel of wood and straw down the hill to celebrate the birth of a new year after winter. The round wheel of cheese may have replaced the wheel to represent the sun.

Historian Jean Jefferies, who has written the only book on the cheese rolling event, suggests the event might have been started even earlier, by Romans; "There was dancing around the maypole, tug of war, children's races on the hill, running races and wrestling. There were all sorts of games and competitions. I'd like to think it was the Romans because, as I understand, they would roll things down a hill as part of paganism."

Why might medieval villagers celebrate a new year in this way?

Why do you think it has continued today?

The first written record of the event dates from 9th June 1836.

This photo shows the start of the race in 1941, during World War 2. During the war and in the years after the war, the cheese wheel was replaced by a wooden wheel. 

Why do you think that happened? (rationing) 

In 2010 the competition was cancelled because of health and safety fears.

What do you think those fears were, do you agree or disagree?

Since 2010 the cheese rolling has continued every year but as an unofficial event. It is known as an extreme sport and one of the worlds toughest downhill races. Runners risk serious injury taking part.  However, although there have been many bruises and broken bones over the years, there is no record of anyone dying during the race. There is an old legend about a man named Billy allegedly killed by a runaway cheese as he was walking up the hill to watch the race, but this is unconfirmed.

Question for Opal schools: If this was on our Opal playground, would we do it? (if your school does opal you will know that a key element is to encourage children to risk- assess. Use this story to explore risk and other options for similar games)

Today the cheese rolling competition is world famous. What started as a medieval English tradition for people living in the village, is today an event where hundreds of people from all over the world join in and thousands come to watch.

Why do you think it is so popular?

The winner this year was Tom Kopke from Germany. He travelled to Brockworth from Germany just for the race. Tom said after the race, "It's everyone's race and you have just got to give your best."

"It's everyone's race" - what does he mean? 

There were seven races this year. Other winners were Niels from Netherlands, Alix from France, Jamie from England and Ariel from America.

What do you notice about these winners?

You could argue this this an old English tradition that should be for English runners only. Including runners from different countries is disrespectful to the tradition. How would you respond?

Why is this about No Outsiders?

Which British value is this about?

Do you want this assembly as a power point with Oracy sentence stems? To join the free mailing list and receive these assemblies as power points every week, email me on a.moffat@excelsiormat.org

No Outsiders: We belong here by Andrew Moffat  (scheme of work for primary schools) 

Andrew Moffat delivers in-school No Outsiders training- watch a short video here 

Register to be a No Outsiders school  (get access to members page with additional resources)

Watch CPD films showing schools teaching belonging

Different faith working together

 

https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/lifestyle/food-and-drink/how-fish-and-chips-are-bringing-together-faiths-in-a-leeds-suburb-5414299

What do you see in the picture, where are they, what do you notice about them? What do you think the story is about?

The photo shows Arabaab Munir on the left with Rabbi Anthony Gilbert on the right. 

What is a Rabbi? 

Arabaab and Anthony follow different faith; Rabbi Anthony Gilbert is Jewish and Arabaab Munir is Muslim.

What do you think brings them together?

Arabaab owns Marlow's British Kitchen in Leeds, which sells fish and chips. Next door is the Beth Hamidrash Hagadol Synagogue and bakery. When Arabaab opened last September, his neighbour Rabbi Anthony visited to say hello. Rabbi Anthony suggested Arabaab started selling Kosher fish and chips.

What is a synagogue?

What does kosher food mean?

Kosher food is food that complies with Jewish dietary customs (also known as kashrut) making it fit for consumption according to Jewish tradition found in the Torah. A key rule is strict separation of meat and dairy products. There needs to be separate fryers for the fish and the chips too. 

Do other religions have customs about how food is prepared?

What do you think Arabaab said when he was asked to prepare his food in a way that was different to his own faith and also have separate fryers for the fish and the chips?

Arabaab said yes. Why do you think he did that?

Arabaab says, "Selling kosher fish and chips helps bring the community together which is the main objective. When people walk through my door it doesn't matter what faith you are. People want to eat together. We don't want to alienate everyone. Word is starting to get around a little and hopefully people love the food."

What does alienate mean? Why doesn't Arabaab want to alienate people?

Rabbi Anthony Gilbert says, "It is the first time in 50 years we have a recognised kosher fish and chip shop in the heart of the community. In a time of turmoil, it's good to have people of all faiths coming together, working together and eating together."

What does he mean by "a time of turmoil"?

What do people of different faith and belief or custom have to do to come together? 

"The chip shop is respected by the community. They respect our customs and we respect theirs."

What can we learn from Arabaab and Rabbi Anthony Gilbert?

Why is this about No Outsiders?

Which British Value is this about?

Do you want this assembly as a power point with Oracy sentence stems? To join the free mailing list and receive these assemblies as power points every week, email me on a.moffat@excelsiormat.org

No Outsiders: We belong here by Andrew Moffat  (scheme of work for primary schools) 

Andrew Moffat delivers in-school No Outsiders training- watch a short video here 

Register to be a No Outsiders school  (get access to members page with additional resources)

Watch CPD films showing schools teaching belonging

National Anthem

 

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/american-hockey-fans-finish-the-canadian-anthem-after-singers-mic-goes-out-watch/

What do you see in the picture, what do you notice, what do you think this story might be about?

The photo shows singer Cami Clune about to start singing at the start of a hockey game in America. The game was between the Buffalo Sabres (based in New York) and the Boston Bruins (based in Boston).

What song do you think Cami sings at the start of the game?

Cami sang the American and Canadian national anthems at the start of the game. 

Both teams are based in America so why do you think two different national anthems are played?

There is a strong Canadian fan base for the Buffalo Sabres because their home ground lies not far from the Canadian border. At all of their home games, both national anthems are performed. 

At this home game, something unexpected happened. Cami started singing the Canadian national anthem but after the first line, there was a technical glitch and her mic cut out. 

How do you think Cami felt?

In most arenas, there would be an awkward silence, but not here. 

What do you think happened next?

The crowd stepped in and continued the song for Cami. Most of the crowd were American but they sang the Canadian national anthem.

Why do you think they did that?

Cami later said the moment was a "cool community moment" that gave here chills.

What do you think she meant by that?

You can watch what happened here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdFvUMesJzA

Who was the outsider here and what happened to make sure they were no longer an outsider?

What are National Anthems for? 

Is it ok to sing a national anthem for a country you don't belong to?

Can you see this happening with England fans at the start of  a world cup game?

Why do you think this story went viral?

Why is this about No Outsiders?

Which British Value is this about?

Do you want this assembly as a power point with Oracy sentence stems? To join the free mailing list and receive these assemblies as power points every week, email me on a.moffat@excelsiormat.org

No Outsiders: We belong here by Andrew Moffat  (scheme of work for primary schools) 

Andrew Moffat delivers in-school No Outsiders training- watch a short video here 

Register to be a No Outsiders school  (get access to members page with additional resources)

Watch CPD films showing schools teaching belonging

homeless

 

Homeless man walked into her cafe asking for money—she asked him one simple question and it changed his life - Amplify Upworthy

What do you see in the picture? Where are they, what are they doing, who do you think they are, what do you think the story might be?

This story is about the owner of a café called Abigail. One day a homeless person came in and asked if Abigail had any spare change for him.

What is spare change, why is he asking for that?

Abigail asked him, “Why don’t you have a job?”

What do you think of that question? Is it rude? What do you think people usually say to homeless people, why ask about a job instead?

How do you think Marcus replied?

Marcus told Abigail he had been in prison and now it was harder to get a job.

What do you think Abigail said?

Abigail said, “Nothing is given to me for free. You want a job? I’ll give you a job!”

Why Say that? Why offer Marcus a job, is that a risk? Why not just give him some money and he’ll go away?

Abigail couldn’t give Marcus a full time job; her business was struggling and she could only afford to employ him for two hours a day. The first day he came, before starting work, Abigail asked him, “Do you want some food?”

Why do that?

Marcus ate half of the sandwich and wrapped the other half and put it in his pocket.

Why do you think he did that?

Marcus explained there was another homeless person across the street who needed food and he was saving the sandwich for her. Abigail asked, “Do you know her?” and Marcus replied, “No, but I know that she is hungry, so I want to give her my food.”

Why do that when Marcus was so hungry himself? What does that show about Marcus?

Marcus worked for two hours. He returned the next day and worked for another two hours. He did this every day for two weeks and then Abigail offered him a permanent job. Abigail says, “Some cafes won’t even let you use the toilet unless you buy something. I don’t judge someone on how they look – go use it. I do not treat homeless people any differently.”

“I don’t judge people” – what does that mean?

Why do you think some café’s won’t let people use a toilet, can you see their point of view? Do you agree or disagree?

When Marcus started working permanently, Abigail suggested Marcus save 10% of his pay every week so he could learn how to save money. Abigail said, “I want to help Marcus but he also needs to want to help himself. Just like Marcus, I had my help. I had plenty of people to help me make it to where I am today. They believed I could do it. People need to have someone to believe in them.”

What do you think of this?

Do you agree people need someone to believe in them? Why/ why not?

What can we learn from this story, why is it like our school?

Why is it about No Outsiders?

Which British Value is it about?

Do you want this assembly as a power point with Oracy sentence stems? To join the free mailing list and receive these assemblies as power points every week, email me on a.moffat@excelsiormat.org

No Outsiders: We belong here by Andrew Moffat  (scheme of work for primary schools) 

Andrew Moffat delivers in-school No Outsiders training- watch a short video here 

Register to be a No Outsiders school  (get access to members page with additional resources)

Watch CPD films showing schools teaching belonging

St George

 

What do you see in the picture, who is this, what do you think this story is about?

This is a stained-glass window showing St George. 

What do you know about St George?

St George is the patron saint of England. St George’s day is on April 23^rd. You might have seen some celebrations last week to mark St George’s day.

What is a patron saint, why do we have a patron saint? 

What sort of symbols are used today to celebrate St George?

Why do you think St George is the patron saint of England? How is he representative of England today?

In England today there are lots of different people from different nations living and working together. You can be born in a different country and feel welcome in England. In 2021 there was a census that showed how many people live in England and Wales today and how many were born in different countries.

Can you guess the figures? What percentage of people living in England and Wales today were born here or born in a different country?

83.2% of people in the UK were born here. 16.8% of residents were born outside England and Wales. There are hundreds of different nationalities living together in the UK today.

What does this have to do with our patron saint St George?

St George was also not born here. If he was part of the census, he would write that he was born in Turkey. 

Does this mean the patron saint of England was an immigrant?

Technically St George was not an immigrant because he never actually lived here. Saint George never visited England. St George lived in the Middle East. 

What countries today are in the Middle East?

Iran, Iraq, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Kuwait, Palestine… this is where our patron saint lived all his life. 

Today we share our patron saint with lots of other countries around the world. 17 countries celebrate St George. He is a national hero in Palestine, Venice, Genoa, Portugal, Malta, Ethiopia and Georgia.

Does it matter if we share our patron saint with other countries? Some people might argue this is why St George is our patron saint because he stands for diversity and different nations coming together. Others might argue St George is just about being English and born in England. What do you think?

St George also brings different religions together. There is a Greek-Orthodox shrine in Al-Khader near Bethlehem which claims to mark the spot where St George was executed by Roman soldiers. It is a space shared by Muslim and Christian communities who every year celebrate the feast of St George together. Muslim and Christian families meet outside the church with their families and bring food

How is this related to our British Values?

Some people argue St George should not be our patron saint. In 2013, a petition was handed to parliament which called for a change in our patron saint because George was not born in England. Some people wanted St Edmund to be our patron saint. Edmund was King of England between 855-869. Some people say Edmund should be our patron saint because he was born here and George was born in a different country. However, others say we should be proud that we share St George with so many other countries; he is a “unifying saint”

Can you see both points of view?

What is your opinion?

Sam Riches is a cultural historian from Lancaster, England, who has studied St George and his origins. Sam says, “I think we are lucky to have St George and be in this family of nations who share an interest in him.”

What does he mean?

What is your opinion? 

Why is this about No Outsiders?

Which British Value is this about?

Do you want this assembly as a power point with Oracy sentence stems? To join the free mailing list and receive these assemblies as power points every week, email me on a.moffat@excelsiormat.org

No Outsiders: We belong here by Andrew Moffat  (scheme of work for primary schools) 

Andrew Moffat delivers in-school No Outsiders training- watch a short video here 

Register to be a No Outsiders school  (get access to members page with additional resources)

Watch CPD films showing schools teaching belonging

Princess for a day

 

Disneyland apologises for banning boy from Princess experience | Walt Disney Company | The Guardian

What do you see in the picture, what do you notice? What do you think this story might be about?

Noah is a Frozen superfan. Who do you think he loves dressing up as?

Noah loves dressing up as Elsa.

Noah’s mum booked a holiday to Disney land and Noah was really excited to hear about the “Princess for a day” experience and his mum booked him on. Noah and his mum were surprised with the first response from Disney.

What do you think the first response from Disney was when mum booked the Princess for a day experience?

Disney replied to Mum and said Noah could not book the princess for a day experience because he was a boy. He was offered a cuddly toy instead.

What do you think about that?

Mum was angry. She wrote to Disney and said, “What terrible, awful fate may befall my son if he wears dresses?” 

What does she mean by that, why choose those words?

“If a little girl wants to be a superhero, she can be. If she wants to be a jedi, she can be. She can be whatever she wants.”

Do you agree or disagree with mum?

How do you think Disney responded to the letter?

Disney responded immediately by apologising to Noah and his mum and changing the rules for the Princess for a day experience. The experience is now open to all children aged 3 to 12. They released a statement:

“Diversity is near and dear to our hearts and we want to make sure that all our guests enjoy their experience at our resort. Of course, both  boys and girls are welcome to enjoy the Princess for a day” experience in addition to all our other special activities.”

Disneyland also changed the wording on their website. It used to read,

“Grant every little girl’s wishes with a Princess experience”

What do you think the wording has been changed to?

Today the website reads:

“Grant every child’s wishes with a princess experience”.

It’s interesting that Disney apologised and changed their policy. Why do you think they chose to do that. They could have replied, “Sorry, the Princess experience is only for girls.”

Why do you think Disney chose to start their statement with “Diversity is near and dear to our hearts.”?

This happened in America a few years ago. Would it happen todqy? Is there a law about this in the UK?

 Noah’s mum wrote on social media, “Now every boy SHALL go to the ball!”

Where does that line come from, why does Noah’s mum write that?

What does this story show us about Disney and about the world in 2026?

Why is this about No Outsiders?

Which British Value is this about?

Do you want this assembly as a power point with Oracy sentence stems? To join the free mailing list and receive these assemblies as power points every week, email me on a.moffat@excelsiormat.org

No Outsiders: We belong here by Andrew Moffat  (scheme of work for primary schools) 

Andrew Moffat delivers in-school No Outsiders training- watch a short video here 

Register to be a No Outsiders school  (get access to members page with additional resources)

Watch CPD films showing schools teaching belonging