From Playground to Performance

St Petroc's New School Choir Hits All the Right Notes

Who says you need years to build a choir? At St Petroc's Church of England Primary School, it took just nine rehearsals, two enthusiastic mums, and a whole lot of singing to create something rather special.

This summer, the school's brand-new choir made an impressive debut, joining Bodmin Way Community Choir for busking at the Bodmin Riding & Heritage Festival before delighting audiences again at the school's summer fete. Not bad for a choir that didn't even exist a few months earlier!

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Meet the Dynamic Duo

The inspiration came from mums Alicia Puckey and Lydia Keen, whose children attend St Petroc's and who both sing with Bodmin Way Community Choir. Spotting a gap in the school's after-school activities, they decided it was time to share the joy of singing with the next generation.

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Alicia & Lydia I Lydia & Alicia at the intergenerational Bodmin Way Community Choir

The pair first worked with Bodmin Way Community Choir's musical director, Caroline Bailey, who led a short programme for a small group before Easter. Younger children sang together, while Years 3 and 4 performed the musical Resurrection Rocks in St Petroc's Church to an enthusiastic audience of proud parents.

When Caroline wasn't able to commit to weekly rehearsals for the summer term, Alicia and Lydia did something wonderfully brave—they decided to run the choir themselves!

Nine Weeks, Six Songs, Countless Smiles

During the Easter holidays, the duo swapped chocolate eggs for songbooks, planning warm-ups, choosing repertoire and preparing to become musical directors.

The response was fantastic, with more than 25 pupils from Years 2 to 6 signing up.

Just nine rehearsals later, the choir had mastered six songs—including three completely from memory:

• Count on Me by Bruno Mars

• Life is a Wonderful Thing – Out of the Ark

• The Lion Sleeps Tonight

• A joyful Gospel Medley featuring three-part singing and signing

• Cornwall My Home by Harry Glasson

• St Petroc's Song by local songwriters

Children Leading the Way

One of the highlights was seeing the older pupils step into leadership roles.

Some Year 6 children already knew Count on Me and asked if they could teach it to the rest of the choir. Before long, pupils were helping conduct rehearsals and even leading sections of the three-part gospel medley.

It quickly became more than just learning songs—it became about teamwork, confidence and encouraging one another.

Even SATs week couldn't stop the fun. Alicia and Lydia surprised everyone with a body percussion warm-up inspired by Golden from KPop Demon Hunters. Safe to say it went down an absolute storm!

More Than Just Singing

Alicia believes music offers children so much more than catchy tunes.

"Music is a universal language. It develops creativity, teaches teamwork, encourages children to support one another and builds confidence by giving them opportunities to perform."

Lydia loved seeing the school choir perform alongside Bodmin Way Community Choir.

"It was a real expression of collaboration and gave the children wonderful role models to sing alongside."

The Best Is Yet to Come

The choir may only be getting started, but Alicia and Lydia already have plenty of exciting ideas for the autumn term.

The children will have a bigger say in choosing songs, there'll be opportunities for duets and small group performances, and the choir will begin exploring simple harmonies. One favourite Christmas carol is already lined up, allowing half the choir to sing the traditional melody while the other half sings a beautiful harmony—a fabulous way to build new musical skills.  

Lydia also has her sights set on another exciting project: starting an after-school recorder group so that one day the choir could be accompanied by fellow pupils. Knowing this enterprising duo, don't be surprised if that dream becomes reality too.

A Town That Loves to Sing

For Alicia and Lydia, this isn't just about one school choir. They'd love to see even more people singing across Bodmin.

Thankfully, every Christmas, that dream already comes a little closer during Bodmin Lights Up, when crowds gather to sing carols along the parade from The Old Library to Mount Folly before joining together around the town Christmas tree.

If this summer has proved anything, it's that all it takes is two passionate mums, a supportive school, a group of enthusiastic children, and a few rehearsals to create something truly uplifting.

Here's hoping St Petroc's school choir is just the first verse in a very long song.