Church and school celebrate with summer fair (From Watford Observer)

Church and school celebrate with summer fair

10:37am Sunday 5th July 2009

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)

A quintessentially English summer fair attracted hundreds of visitors to the village of Langleybury yesterday – including an assortment of creepy crawlies.

The St Paul's summer fair was jointly hosted by St Paul's School and St Paul's Church, both in Langleybury Lane, and marked the first joint summer event to be organised by both school and church.

The Reverend Ysmena Pentelow, vicar at St Paul's Church, said the fair had brought two already closely affiliated communities even closer together.

She said: “We usually have two separate summer fairs but this is the first time we have had it together.

“We have done a Christmas event together for the past couple of years and the school is a Church of England school, so we already have a close relationship. So it just seemed like the right thing to do.

“It is about building a community relationship between the school, the church and with the wider community.”

Outside the church, a jazz band played underneath the sunshine, while visitors wandered through the church to inspect artwork by students at the neighbouring school and enjoyed a ploughman's lunch.

Across the road, there was a treasure hunt for children, a barbecue and a bouncy castle, as well as the visit of a snake, some hissing cockroaches and a menagerie of other insects and small animals to thrill the children.

Sue Rayment, headteacher at the school, said the fair had been a great success.

She said: “For a long time now we have been been worked very hard to forge links between the school and the church and to create a St Paul's community.

“Today has just been the most wonderful family atmosphere. It has basically been a great day out for everyone at the church and everyone at the school.”

She added: “It is about bringing the two communities together and celebrating the two communities.”

And among the visitors enjoying the warm weather was Richard Harrington, Conservative parliamentary candidate for Watford.

Mr Harrington said: “St Paul's summer fair just highlights what is great about this country; People enjoying themselves on a sunny afternoon and supporting good causes.”

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)