The Roedean Year 7 girls took the trip through the school’s secret tunnel down to the undercliff last Wednesday morning (June 16) and each collected 2,000 pebbles.
They then created their own personal memorial, making a vibrant line of pebbles and chalk creations into a wall of honour to remember each of the victims of the pandemic that had died up until that day (June 16).
Some spelt out the letters NHS with their pebbles, others created hearts, sea creatures and messages of hope. After they had finished, the girls processed in silence along the line of thousands and thousands of pebbles.
Roedean pupil Ariella Brooks said: “It feels like Covid has been around for such a long time, and my year-group felt strongly that we should do something to show that we know that it has affected so many people in different ways – and this piece of art out of pebbles was a fun way to create an important memorial to those who have died from Covid.”
The school’s deputy head Dr Ross Barrand added: “It was really moving to see the girls all working to create such a visual memorial. Everyone has been affected by the last 15 months one way or the other and I know the girls wanted to express this. They also wanted the memorial to show hope for the future as we hopefully transition out of the pandemic here in the UK. Given that the school has students from more than 40 countries, it also has wider symbolism for those who have died all round the world.”
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The Roedean pupils each created their own personal memorial with pebbles and chalk
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Some of the Roedean pupils spelt out the letters NHS with their pebbles, others created hearts, sea creatures and messages of hope
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The Roedean year 7 girls laid out a total of 127,917 pebbles along the undercliff sea wall
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Year 7 Roedean pupil Tiah Nayan creating her memorial