Pupils show racism the red card in competition win

Three Year 8 pupils have won awards in the Show Racism the Red Card School Competition for England, claiming first and third place positions respectively across three categories – Creative Writing, T-Shirt Design and Music. 

The charity, Show Racism the Red Card, uses the high-profile status of football and professional players to convey important anti-racism messages to society. With over 20,000 young people taking part from round 300 schools across the country, the competition amplifies these messages to present education as a powerful tool for change. 

The pupils were invited to Old Trafford football stadium to attend the awards ceremony. Isabella won first place in the T-Shirt Design category, and will now see her design featured in this years’ FIFA football game, while Emily took third place in the Creative Writing category and Sia achieved third place in the Music category. 

Former professional footballers John Barnes and Viv Anderson – who made history by becoming the first black player to represent the England senior men’s national team – presented the girls with their awards before both Emily and Sia performed their pieces to the ceremony’s audience. Emily read out her poem about standing up to racism while Sia sang ‘The Colour of My Skin’ – a song she wrote specifically for the competition.

I was surprised to win third place in the Music category as I knew there would be lots of other entries, but it made me feel really good about myself, especially as the lyrics have such an important message.

Sia, Music competition winner

Speaking about her T-Shirt Design win, Isabella said: “When I designed my t-shirt i thought about how I could include all skin colours and portray the message that no skin colours should face racism. I also thought about linking it back to football, so I added red cards with the title of the competition Show Racism the Red Card.” 

During the awards ceremony, Emily was also presented with the Jo Cox Memorial Award. Her poem was selected as the winner by Jo Cox’s sister, highlighting its relevance and impact. By personifying racism, the piece used the football theme to convey important messages: “Racism walked off, exposed under the stage light. The gate closed behind it. The field remained uneven, but finally honest.” 

Assistant Head Pastoral, Miss Victoria Standring, said: “I’m really proud of the girls. The whole year group submitted  some really fantastic entries and to get three winners was brilliant. It was even more special to see Emily win the Jo Cox Memorial Award as this was a complete surprise on the day. The messages conveyed through our pupils’ work were really impactful and we couldn’t be prouder of them for sharing these through the competition.” 

Pupils enter the Show Racism the Red Card competition as part of our Personal, Social, Health, Citizenship Education (PSHCE) curriculum, learning how to become upstanders instead of bystanders and drive positive change.

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