Students float their ?Enchanted Forest? into televised parade

4th January 2016

Students from Barking & Dagenham College put their design and construction skills into action by creating a magical float for London?s New Year?s Day Parade. The float represented the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham in the televised competition against all the other London boroughs and clinched a respectable 7th place and £2,500 towards the Mayor's charity.

The theme of the float was ‘The Enchanted Forest’ to fit in with the overall theme of the 2016 parade which was ‘Magical’.

A huge lorry and 40 foot trailer were donated by local company Ford and some 40 students and staff were involved in the planning, design and production of the float; this included fashion, art and design, carpentry, painting & decorating and electrical students.

Securing 7th place in the float competition has brought in £2,500 the Mayor's chosen charity, Sycamore Trust UK. The Trust support parents, carers and individuals affected by Autistic Spectrum Disorders and/or Learning Difficulties.

During the parade, the Enchanted Forest float was accompanied by a troupe of dancers from The Elite Dance Academy performing to songs including ‘A kind of magic’ by Queen. Students from the College helped by collecting money for the charity, alongside the float.

Before the parade, the students were visited by the Mayor, Councillor Simon J Bremner who looked over the students’ creations, commenting:

“I am very impressed with the students’ work. It certainly does look enchanting and a perfect fit for the magical theme.”

Mark Robertson, Principal and CEO at Barking & Dagenham College, added

“Absolutely wonderful. I think it’s a brilliant reflection of the great work between a great college and a great London Borough.”

Mike Paxton, Curriculum Director at Barking & Dagenham College added

“Helping the Mayor create a unique float for the Parade has become an annual event for our students and they love doing it. It gives the students a chance to put the skills they have learnt in class to the test and once again we are all very proud of what they have achieved.”

The televised parade through London started at 12pm from Hyde Park Corner, finishing at Whitehall at 3.30pm. Some 8,500 performers, from 20 countries worldwide took part in the spectacle.