Pupils are being encouraged to visit places of worship and show off their creative flair by entering an art competition organised by the City of Wolverhampton Council's Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (SACRE).

Schools can take part in the SACRE contest by submitting pieces of art by pupils who have been inspired on an educational visit to local churches, mosques and temples.

In doing so they will be in the running to win all expenses paid trips for their classes to the Harry Potter Studio Tour, the Tate Modern in London and Conkers Adventure Forest. Great individual prizes are also up for grabs.

Entries will be judged by local educational, religious and artistic leaders, with a prize giving ceremony and exhibition showcasing some of the entries taking place at Wolverhampton Art Gallery in April.

Councillor Claire Darke, the City of Wolverhampton Council's Cabinet Member for Education, said: "Wolverhampton is a multi cultural, multi faith City, and it is very important that religious education continues to be taught in our schools.

"This is a great chance for pupils to get creative and show off their skills while also learning more about religion and places of worship, and I am sure the standard of entries will be very high once again."

The deadline for entries is Friday 30 March, and pupils can paint, draw or write about their visit. Schools which would like more information about the competition, or require help in organising a visit to a place of worship, should contact Charlotte Harding on 01902 554137 or email charlotte.harding@wolverhampton.gov.uk.

While religious education must be taught in school by law, it is not part of the national curriculum. The SACRE is in place to give the local community the opportunity to influence what pupils learn in religious education, and advises the council on how to improve teaching and collective worship for schools.

  • released: Wednesday 17 January, 2018