A WEST Dorset school celebrated the festival of light as pupils learnt more about Indian culture and cuisine.

Mountjoy School in Beaminster marked Diwali with a cooking, art, dance and sensory session.

The special school invited the Lions of Punjab to visit pupils, who dazzled the children with their brightly coloured costumes.

The guests demonstrated traditional Bhangra dances and then taught the children their dance techniques and movements.

Teaching assistant at Mountjoy School, Davina Pennels, said: “The children had great fun, they tried really hard to learn the dances and they did fantastically well.

"There was an awful lot of giggling. It was lovely to see the children getting so much enjoyment from the experience.”

Mountjoy School caters for children with a range of complex needs including Autistic Spectrum Disorders and moderate to severe learning difficulties.

The children were taught the story of the festival of light and Rama and Sita, and how these enduring stories play a part in Indian culture today. The pupils made elephants in art class and later, in a sensory session, they learnt about the smells and sounds they could associate with India, like curry, ginger and incense.

For lunch, the children had an Indian feast of vegetable curry, saffron rice, potato saag and poppadoms, followed by a pudding of coconut and mango mousse. It was an opportunity for the children to taste hot and spicy food which many of them hadn’t done before.

Headteacher, Jackie Shanks, said: “It’s great to understand and experience the different cultures we have in this country.

"We are so lucky to have such a rich diversity of nationalities and cultures to learn from. My grateful thanks go to Lions of Punjab who really brought the whole event to life and to the staff, all of whom dressed in Saris for the day and threw themselves enthusiastically into all the days events.”