A Peterhead primary school is preparing to visit the site of a war-time naval base after winning a Legion Scotland competition.
Burnhaven Primary School has been named as the victors in the Legion’s competition for schools to produce a story about life aboard a World War I battleship.
Entries from throughout the country were submitted, with the top 12 put online for public voting. But it was Burnhaven’s story – which received 28% of the total votes – that was declared the outright winner.
Christian Ritchie, a teacher at the primary school, said the children were “over the moon” with the result.
She added: “Right from the start, the children were enthusiastic about the project.
“The competition sparked their imaginations and helped them understand the life-changing impact the war had on those who fought, their families and local communities as well as the country as a whole.”
Classmates and teachers from the school will now travel this summer to Orkney’s Scapa Flow, where the British made base during the war.
Kevin Gray, a recipient of the Military Medal and chief executive officer of Legion Scotland, said it was clear that every submission had been the result of hard work, but that Burnhaven had “captured the essence of the war at sea”.
He added: “We would like to thank everyone who entered the competition this year.”
A series of commemorative events have been organised in the Orkney Islands and elsewhere on May 31 to mark the centenary of the Battle of Jutland, the war’s biggest naval battle.
More than 6000 British personnel and 2500 Germans died in the battle which took place on May 31, 1916 in the North Sea.
