Two metre mosaic based on drawing by year 5 student.

The children of St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Upminster, have created a two metre mosaic, with an award winning mosaic artist.

Paul Siggins, an internationally renowned artist, visited the school with his team from The Mosaic Studio, on St. Marys Lane, on Wednesday and Thursday.

Over 100 children, from every year group, contributed to a mosaic of St Joseph,

The design was based on a drawing by year 5 pupil Alice Bettega, and chosen by headteacher James Johnson out of over 100 pieces.

Paul, 50, from Leigh-on-sea, visits schools across Havering to teach children how to build mosaics.

Paul said: “I started going to schools back in 2000, when my daughter was in school.”

“The school was asked to do something to celebrate the millennium and I though it would be nice make a mosaic.”

“When you are an artist it can be quite insular, so going out to groups of people, it can be quite exciting what you can achieve in a few days,” Paul explained.

The popularity within schools comes from mosaic being “a very simple craft,” easy to teach to young children.

Fiona Siggins, from the Mosaic Studio said: “We never tire of the excitement children get from their experience.

Fiona, Paul’s wife, continued: “When the mosaic is unveiled and the children see the scale and impact of what they’ve achieved they’re just bursting pride”.

James Johnson said he approached Paul, after seeing a mosaic he had produced in Leigh-on-sea.

James explained: “The children of a school there had made the mosaic, and I thought it would be a nice thing to do at St. Josephs.”

The mosaic will be installed on Monday March 1.