It's a cracker! Fort Hill pupils honoured by comedy legend

Year 13 students, Lloyd Gillespie, Megan Harper and Abjan Acherya were presented with a Carson Prize for their short film called 'The Tree of Life' which was showcased during the event.

The Carson Awards for Integrated Education are a special bursary scheme and prize fund to support the creative talents of pupils at integrated schools across Northern Ireland demonstrating 'What integration means to me'. The event provided an opportunity to view a selection of completed works from previous entrants, including a number of short films, as well presentation of the Carson Prize to Fort Hill College.

Frank was joined on stage by Baroness May Blood, IEF Campaign Chair, along with his son Tony Carson, to officially launch the next round of Awards for 2010-2011.

The Fort Hill pupils worked with Fort Hill Integrated Nursery Unit and Primary School on the short film to demonstrate the idea of pupils beginning as seeds in the Nursery School, setting down roots in the Primary School and growing towards maturity as they progress through the College.

The film also highlighted the core values of the H.E.A.R.T. (Honesty, Effort, Attitude, Respect, Tolerance) which develop and grow throughout the life of the tree.

Addressing the theatre full of school children and teachers, Frank said: "I have a lump in my throat after seeing all of these projects. It's so sad to think of the pain and sadness that was caused during the troubles, but through programmes like this we hope that bit by bit, we can all try to make things better for future generations. Now myself and Tony have a great opportunity to help the Integrated Education Fund make a difference and it's amazing to see the talent in the room today."

Funding for the programme has been provided by Frank and his son Tony, a successful business entrepreneur, and is administered and supported by the Integrated Education Fund, the charitable foundation which supports the growth and development of integrated education in Northern Ireland.