At St Helen’s Primary School, we don’t just learn about the world—we connect with it. Having successfully achieved the Intermediate Level International School Award, we are currently working towards the full Accreditation for 2026.

Our recent action plan was described by British Council reviewers as "Exceptional," noting our strong student leadership and our unique approach to using our diverse parent community to build global links.

🚀 What’s Happening This Year (2025-2026)

This academic year, we are embarking on five flagship projects designed to embed internationalism into every corner of our curriculum.

🎨 The Creative Process: Global Sculpture Links

At St Helen’s, we believe art is a universal language. We are currently running two incredible international collaborations that challenge our pupils to turn 2D ideas into 3D masterpieces, connecting modern art with global history.

Upper Key Stage 2: The Pete Moorhouse & Italy Exchange

Working with IC D'Aosta Scura in Naples, our older pupils are exploring "art without borders" through the work of modern British sculptor Pete Moorhouse.

• The Inspiration: Pupils are studying Moorhouse’s abstract style and how it connects to Early Islamic Civilisations. His use of complex symmetry and geometric patterns—inspired by the Islamic Golden Age—is the foundation for our designs.

• The Exchange: Our pupils created 2D sketches using geometric shapes and symmetry. These designs have been shared digitally with our Italian partners.

• The Challenge: Each student is now interpreting a design sent from Italy, bringing it to life as a 3D clay sculpture. It is a true "International Art Adventure"!

Lower Key Stage 2: The South Korea Collaboration

Our Year 4 pupils have teamed up with Troy Christian International School in South Korea. This project is inspired by a famous Korean artist who pioneered the technique of transforming children's raw drawings into professional sculptures.

• Sharing Joy: Pupils in both countries sketched something that brings them "pure joy," focusing on personal expression and imagination.

• Interpretive Art: Our Year 4s sent their sketches to Korea to be sculpted, while simultaneously receiving drawings from the Korean children. Our pupils are now working hard to interpret these Korean designs into clay sculptures here at St Helen's.

These projects teach our children design empathy—understanding and honouring the vision of an artist from a completely different culture.

📸 Look out for photos below!

You can see our finished sculptures being "interpreted" across the miles, showcasing the brilliant creative links between Ipswich, Naples, and South Korea.

🌱 Sustainability: Connecting for the Future

Working with Primăria Berești Bistrița in Romania, our Year 1 and Year 3 pupils are tackling the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

• Student Voice: Year 1 pupils staged a "Greta Thunberg style" protest to learn about activism.

• Cultural Experts: Our Romanian-heritage pupils have taken the lead as classroom experts, sharing insights into life and sustainability in Romania.

✉️ Language Exchange: Collège Jean Vilar, France

Our Year 5 and 6 pupils are breathing life into their French lessons through a high-tech pen-pal system.

• To ensure no letter is lost, pupils hand-write their letters in French, which we then scan and email to our partner school in Angers.

• Impact: Our Year 6 French curriculum has been entirely rewritten to match the topics our pupils actually want to discuss with their French friends!

📬 Postcrossing: The World in a Mailbox

Our whole school, from Nursery to Year 6, participates in a global postcard exchange.

• Every class sends postcards to random locations across the globe.

• Geography in Action: We plot every reply we receive on a massive world map in the hall, tracking our global reach.

💃 Dance Across the World

A vibrant celebration of international movement! At St Helen’s, dance is a powerful tool for cultural immersion, allowing our pupils to "step into the shoes" of other traditions and modern global trends.

We are currently preparing for a spectacular showcase during our International Week, where the community will see:

• Year 1: Traditional Dance from Bangladesh. Our youngest learners are exploring the vibrant culture of South Asia, learning graceful movements and rhythmic steps that celebrate the heritage of Bangladesh.

• Year 2: Nigerian Dance, Africa. Year 2 are bringing the energy of West Africa to the hall! They are practicing traditional Nigerian dances, focusing on the powerful rhythms and storytelling that are central to African dance traditions.

• Year 3: Romanian Folk Dancing. Celebrating our school's strong Romanian links, Year 3 are mastering the intricate steps and formations of traditional folk dancing, building on their collaborative work with our partner school in Berești Bistrița.

• Year 4: K-Pop Choreography. Bringing modern global culture into the studio, Year 4 are practicing high-energy moves to South Korean K-Pop, exploring how music and digital media connect young people across the world today.

• Year 5: The Italian Tarantella. Our Year 5 pupils are exploring the history of Naples through the Tarantella. Using authentic tambourines, they are learning this fast-paced folk dance which forms a key part of our Italian partnership exchange.

• Year 6: Classical Ballet. In a study of poise, discipline, and European history, Year 6 are learning the fundamentals of Ballet, researching its origins and how it became a foundation for dance worldwide.

This collective effort ensures that every child at St Helen's experiences the joy of global diversity through physical expression, from ancient traditional roots to modern-day global hits.

🎵 Music Across the World: Uniting Through Song

At St Helen’s, we believe music is a universal language that bridges borders. Our music curriculum is currently alive with the sounds of our global partners and our own diverse school community.

• Global Repertoire: Pupils are currently mastering traditional chants and folk songs, including the Kenyan greeting song "Jambo Bwana" and the Romanian folk classic "Cucule, pasăre sură."

• A Celebration of Heritage: These pieces allow our pupils to explore different vocal techniques and rhythms while celebrating the specific heritages represented in our classrooms.

• Performance: The culmination of this learning will be a showcase performance for parents and the wider community during International Week, proving that when we sing together, we truly act as global citizens.

🏛️ Our International Heritage

Our journey to Accreditation is built on years of successful global work:

• The Onatti Theatre: We regularly host French-language theatre productions, giving pupils a chance to hear native speakers in a fun, live environment.

• Language Ambassadors: Our dedicated student team meets weekly to plan assemblies, teach the school sign language (BSL), and lead celebrations for the European Day of Languages.

• Community Links: From celebrating St Nicholas Day by placing shoes outside our classroom doors to our multicultural Year 6 productions, we celebrate the 400+ voices that make St Helen’s unique.

🏙️ Backing the Bid: St Helen’s & Ipswich City of Culture

Our international outlook starts right here in our home town. In February, we were delighted to welcome a very special guest to Year 2: Lee Walker, CEO of Ipswich Central.

Lee visited to speak with the children about the exciting bid for Ipswich to become a City of Culture. As a leader driving this campaign, he shared his vision for the future of our community and how culture connects us all.

• Inspired Action: The children were incredibly enthused by the visit, sparking deep discussions about what makes our town special.

• Creative Campaigning: Following the visit, pupils designed vibrant "Back the Bid" posters and produced persuasive writing detailing exactly how they would invest in our town's culture if the bid is successful.

• Real-World Impact: We have officially sent the children’s work to Lee Walker, and we are hopeful that their creative ideas and passionate voices will be featured in the official campaign!

This visit provided a brilliant opportunity for our Key Stage 1 pupils to see themselves as active citizens who can influence the future of their own "City of Culture."

📚 A Magical Visit from Gwen Brookes: World Book Day

To celebrate World Book Day, our Year 3, 4, and 5 pupils were treated to a very special visit from renowned French author, Gwen Brookes.

Gwen brought the magic of French storytelling to life, reading from her popular series and engaging the children in a fast-paced French quiz to test their comprehension. The pupils then had a unique opportunity to lead a Q&A session, asking Gwen about her life as an author and the creative process behind her books.

• Collaborative Writing: Inspired by the visit, Year 3 and Year 5 have been busy crafting their own original stories featuring Gwen's famous character, Berthe the Witch.

• Parisian Adventures: Our stories follow Berthe as she visits the famous landmarks of Paris—directly linking to the geography and landmarks we have been studying in our French lessons.

• Showcasing Success: We are excited to send our finished "St Helen's Editions" back to Gwen to showcase our brilliant work! You will also be able to see a selection of these stories on display during our International Day.

• Continue the Journey: For any children who want to keep practicing their French reading at home, we now have a full collection of Gwen Brookes’ stories available to borrow from our school library.

🤝 Partner With Us

We are a strategic, community-embedded school always looking for new international partners for collaborative projects, inclusion activities, and sharing best practices.

Are you a school abroad? We would love to hear from you! 📧 Email: international@sthelensprimary.net

"It is great to see that you have student language ambassadors who take the lead... St Helen's Primary is clearly a school where internationalism is a priority." — British Council Feedback, 2025

📸 Gallery: Global Learning in Action

Watch this space for photos of our clay sculptures, examples of our International dances and songs and studies during our International Week.