'Languages are a bridge to world'

Russell Clark - Head of the Language Centre at Keele University

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EVERY so often, a project comes along that reminds you what young people can teach the rest of us.

Keele University Language Centre's recent poster competition - run in partnership with Port Vale Football Club - was one of those moments.

On the surface, it was a simple idea: ask children from across Stoke-on-Trent to design a poster saying “Welcome to Stoke-on-Trent” in German, French, Spanish, or Polish, and decorate it with drawings of things they thought were important in the local area.

But once the entries started to arrive, the project became something far bigger.

More than 500 posters came in from schools all over the city, from Year 3 pupils sketching oatcakes and bottle kilns in bold felt-tip lines, to Year 7 students experimenting with digital design, blending Stoke's industrial heritage with the colours and shapes of European languages.

Every single one carried a sense of pride - pride in the city, pride in learning to communicate in a new language, and pride in the idea of showcasing the city to the rest of the world.

Seven winners were eventually chosen, though it would be fair to say that choosing only seven felt almost impossible.