Sagal Abdi-Wali

 

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/sep/09/former-child-refugee-selected-as-labour-candidate-in-byelection-for-starmers-old-seat

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/oct/09/sagal-abdi-wali-journey-child-refugee-labour-mp-former-pms-seat-london

What do you see in the picture, what is happening, what do you notice, where is the photo taken, what do you think this story might be about?

In the photo we see Sagal Abdi-Wali. Sagal. She has just got a new job.

Can you guess what the job is?

Last week, Sagal Abdi-Wali was elected to serve as MP for Holborn and St Pancras, London. Sagal has lived in Camden, London since she arrived in the UK as a refugee in the 1990s. She was born in Somalia and fled the country aged 7 with her mother and four brothers. 

What is a refugee?

What is a MP?

How does someone become a member of Parliament?

Sagal said she hoped to inspire "people who look like me - this is Camden, this is Britain."

What does she mean by that?

What is the image of refugees that people often think of?

How is Sagal challenging those stereotypes?

Sagal has spent decades volunteering in her community. Before being a MP she was a governor of several schools and also set up local football clubs, where she still plays regularly. She was the first black female to be elected as the leader of Camden Council. Her friends say she has "deep community roots".

What do you think deep community roots means?

A MP in a neighbouring constituency said of Sagal, "Her love of Camden is so obvious and people really value that. She's very caring, very local and she genuinely sems to have a passion for politics and public service."

Why do you think people say she has a "passion" for her work - how do you show passion for what you do?

Sagal says is was in the 2010's when she became interested in politics and she noticed increasing numbers of homeless people around London; "It was only when I was old enough to look back and think about it in a philosophical way... my mum was always looking after us and made our lives nice, serene... whether we were in a refugee camp or temporary housing."

What do you think life is like in a refugee camp? How can a mother make the experience "nice and serene" for her young children?

Not everyone is supportive of Sagal's win; some people posted on social media last week about Sagal being born in Somalia. 

What are they saying about England today?

What do we say in our school about being born in a different country?

Is there a law about this in the UK?

Why is is about No Outsiders?

Which British Value is this about? 

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

I usually send these out on a Sunday morning.

 

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)

Fiona the sheep

 

https://www.upworthy.com/fiona-worlds-loneliest-sheep-rescued-ex1/?fbclid=IwY2xjawU4JmhleHRuA2FlbQIxMABwZG9mBWJyaWQRMk1rNGdpVzNQVGprRXF2c1FzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEecgsrWDF_97nVGM5cpH2NG9jT8-ktF6jN4C6_-TD7vK9027eUeSY2gqbEtrY_aem_-3Q_KYFx37wTiCp5X7lpuw

What do you see in the picture? What do you notice? What do you think this story is about?

The picture shows a sheep on a cliff in Scotland.

What do you know about sheep?

Sheep are usually highly social animals; they don’t like isolation.

What is isolation? Why do you think sheep don’t like isolation?

This story is about a sheep who spent two years in isolation on at the bottom of a cliff in Scotland. The sheep became something of a local legend as it kept being spotted by people passing by on fishing boats. The first person to spot the sheep was a kayaker in 2021.

What is a kayak?

Two years later the same kayaker spotted the sheep again. The sheep appeared to be healthy; not malnourished at all, but a little scruffy.

How is the sheep surviving? Why is the sheep scruffy?

Other people on fishing boats also spotted the sheep and it was soon given a name – Fiona. No-one knew how the sheep got there.

Can you think of an explanation for how the sheep got to the bottom of the cliff and why it was staying there?

A petition started on the mainland to rescue Fiona and over 50,000 people signed it. However, rescuing Fiona was a problem.

What do you think was the problem?

A Scottish animal rescue organisation called the rescue “incredibly complex” because of the terrain being so inaccessible but also because human interaction with Fiona was likely to cause her extreme stress. So a group of five farmers hatched a plan. They were going to rescue Fiona.

How do you think they did it?

The farmers used a lot of rope and a lot of patience. They found Fiona in a cave and hoisted her to safety. Fiona was taken to Dalscone Farm in Dumfries, Scotland. Here her new owner said she was healthy and relaxed. People can visit the farm, see the animals and feed them.

Some people argued Fiona shouldn’t have been rescued. Did Fiona want to be rescued? They say she is now in a place like a “petting zoo” where she will be among people who can touch her all day. The farmer replied, Fiona would be kept away from the public “until she’s ready for it.”

Can you see different points of view here?

What is your opinion on this story?

Who was the outsider in this story?

Do you think Fiona chose to be an outsider? Do people want to be an outsider sometimes?

What is the difference between choosing to be an outsider and being made to feel like an outsider? Is it the same feeling, is there a difference?

Which British Value is this about?

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

I usually send these out on a Sunday morning.

 

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)

 

ReUnion Jack

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cq1kx1xg74v9o

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

The picture shows Birmingham artist Clare Elisabeth and her art work titled "Re-Union Jack"

What is art?

Why do you think Clare called the art "Re-Union Jack?

What do you think it is made from?

The art is made from worn out flags that were left on lamp posts. Over the last year many of the flags have become ripped and tattered because of the weather. Clare used the old flags to create a new flag and said she hoped her art would serve as a message of unity.

How can art be a message of unity?

Clare asked hundreds of people living in the West Midlands to add their names to the art. Lots of people added their signatures.

Clare said the art celebrated Birmingham's heritage as a "magical melting pot".

What do you think she means by that?

When the original flags were put up on lamp posts, there were different opinions about them. Some people thought they were patriotic, some people thought they were divisive.

What does patriotic mean?

What does divisive mean?

Can you see both points of view about the flags?

Clare says that her art work today is a symbol of togetherness. She says she saw the flags falling apart on lamp posts; "I thought rather than throw them away, there's got to be a way that I can repurpose them in to something more positive."

What does repurpose mean, what is another word for repurpose?

The art work was shown at the Council House as part of International Day of Birmingham celebrations.

The art work was signed by many people who live in the West Midlands but who might have heritage in other places. For example, singer Jorja Smith signed the art work; she has a Jamaican father and English mother and she was raised in Birmingham. 

Why do you think the Council House in Birmingham chose to display this art work, what are they saying about Birmingham today? 

Do you think the people who put up the original flags are happy with this art work? 

Why is this about No Outsiders?

Which British Value is this about?

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

I usually send these out on a Sunday morning.

 

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)