On Friday, Ely College students and staff marked the Armistice Centenary and remembrance weekend with a moving Last Post Ceremony. All 1100 students from Ely College and Bishop Laney Sixth Form gathered together as a community to show their respects for the fallen. They were joined by Mayor Rouse and representatives from the Royal British Legion.
Over the week leading up to Remembrance Sunday, Ely College students have enjoyed helping the textiles department create an inspirational art installation to commemorate 100 years since the end of World War One, the fallen of all conflicts and those who still serve. Every student hand made a poppy, with hundreds of them being hung in the main hall. Assemblies and tutor time activities have explored the nature of service, sacrifice and remembrance for the victims of conflict.
At the Remembrance service, students and visitors fell silent for two minutes at 11am, after which the Last Post was sounded as Principal Richard Spencer read The Exhortation.
Joined by standard-bearers from the Royal British Legion and one of the ‘There But Not There’ Tommy silhouettes, students were praised for their respect. Having hosted a touring exhibition that details a centenary history of the Cambridgeshire Regiment, students reflected on 1918, which saw the heaviest losses for the 1/1st Battalion, more so than any other year of the War.
Mr Spencer commented: “Working in partnership with the local groups and historians has allowed students to gain a deeper understanding of the events of WWI. Ely College and the people of Ely shall not forget.”
