‘Delivering Joy’ and Pizza Making with PFA

This week, Martello and Obelisk classes took part in a fantastic real-world learning experience as part of their Preparation for Adulthood curriculum. Pupils visited Tesco to complete a budgeting challenge connected to Delivering Joy, a wonderful charitable initiative run by Dunelm.

Working in small groups, pupils were given a budget to create a Christmas gift bundle for a baby aged 0–5. They compared prices, used calculators to keep track of their spending, and made thoughtful choices about what items would be most useful for a young family.

Back at school, pupils wrapped the gifts beautifully and wrote heartfelt cards to accompany them. Their care, teamwork and generosity shone throughout the whole activity.

For the second part of the day, pupils visited Slice which is a local, independent, family-run pizza restaurant in Epping for a hands-on cooking experience. Staff welcomed the pupils into the kitchen, where they learned how to stretch dough, add sauce, and choose toppings to create their own pizzas.

Many showed impressive resilience and confidence; some even chose to make pizzas for staff as well as their own! Pupils asked questions, engaged with the chef, and demonstrated fantastic independence and pride in their work.

It was a wonderful day showcasing budgeting skills, teamwork, communication, community participation, and practical independence. We are so proud of the maturity and enthusiasm shown by our pupils.