Mocktails, Menus and Maths!

This year, our flagship primary programme, Work Week, has reached 23 schools across Hackney, Islington, Haringey and Waltham Forest. We’re thrilled to expand our reach to new areas of London, and also return to schools where the programme has not been delivered for many years.

One such school is Woodberry Down Community Primary School, whose recent Work Week – their first since 2009 – was a brilliant success. Every pupil in the school, from Nursery to Year 6, participated in a week of work-related activities, with each year group’s sessions following a different theme.

The theme for Year 4 was Literacy and Numeracy at Work. They put their learning into action during a workplace visit to Shaka Zulu, the Camden restaurant as renowned for its exotic South African-inspired cuisine as its spectacular décor.

Confronted with 20 foot high warrior statues on entering the vast restaurant, the pupils were more than a little overawed! But they soon recovered their composure and got stuck into some fun work-related activities, run by volunteer staff from the restaurant.

The 30 pupils tried their hands at being chefs (making the restaurant’s most popular dish, the crocodile cigar!), mixing mocktails and waiting tables. During each activity, they learnt how numeracy skills come into play in the real world: from calculating a customer’s bill to finding the best ratio of fruit juices in their drink!

After all that learning, the children sat down to a well-deserved lunch, generously provided by Shaka Zulu. The trip was a highlight for the pupils of 4B, who told us they learnt that “jobs are important” and that “you have to be polite to customers”!

The staff of Shaka Zulu, who generously gave their time and resources to host the students, felt it was a valuable experience for all involved. “It was such a pleasure for us to introduce the children to a working environment, and to engage with them at such a young age,” said Manny Shoria, the restaurant’s manager. “It is so rewarding to be able to inspire children and open a window into the working world. We aspire to develop a positive attitude towards work, and hope they will come away with enjoyable memories of their visit.”

“Work Week is a great way to introduce children to the world of work, so we were really delighted to be asked to bring it to the pupils of Woodberry Down again,” said Claire Butler, Programme Manager in our Primary Team. “Every year, Work Week helps thousands of children to imagine their futures by introducing them to a vast range of jobs and career paths – we’re enormously grateful to companies like Shaka Zulu and their staff, who give their time and resources to support the next generation. We couldn’t do it without them!”

To find out more about Work Week, or our other programmes for primary schools, click here. Alternatively, you can contact us by emailing info@inspire-ebp.org.uk or calling 020 7275 6060.