Pupils at a private school used a remote-learning graphic design class to thank essential services workers for their devotion to duty over the Covid-19 pandemic.

Middle school-level pupils at Somersfield Academy in Devonshire used a class project theme of Expression of Hope to show their gratitude and emphasise the need for safety regulations.

Anayah Curtis, 13, said that her poster asked people to take steps to slow the spread of the virus for the sake of healthcare professionals.

She added: “If people are out every single day being outside their house for no reason then it’s just not going to help slow the spread of the coronavirus.

“If people saw this poster, they would hopefully realise that they need to stay at home or wear a mask.”

Anayah, an M3 pupil from Smith’s, said that many of her family members worked in the delivery business or as healthcare professionals, so the safety of essential workers was important to her.

She wanted to remind people to thank these workers for their hard work.

Anayah said: “No one really understands what they go through every single day, like having to put on their protective gear every morning or having to wake up early to prepare for a lot of people.”

Satya Darrell, 13, said that the project required research into what essential workers did and why their jobs were important.

She added that her studies helped her understand that essential workers included more than just healthcare staff.

Satya explained: “I only saw certain people as essential workers, but now that I see so many people working and supporting us I think that I better understand that there are many essential workers.”

Satya, an M3 pupil from St George’s, said that her poster included hashtags that encouraged people to follow safety regulations.

She wanted her poster to help keep people safe and highlight the hard work that essential workers did.

Satya said: “I wanted people to know that there are people who are risking their lives to protect us and that we can show them thanks by doing simple things, much like this poster.

“I also feel like it’s important that we give them a vision of hope and make sure that they know that they are supported.”

Neil Varwandkar, 13, made a poster that emphasised the importance of social-distancing and staying indoors as much as possible. He said that people at first overlooked how much self-isolation helped slow the spread of Covid-19.

The M4 pupil added: “Some people can’t afford to just stay in isolation, but I think it’s important to do that because it stops the spread of the virus.”

Neil, from Smith’s, said that his poster featured a doctor who asked people to help the profession by staying at home.

He added that the length of time that the island was shut down had convinced people how serious the pandemic was.

Neil said: “Even I thought this might last maybe a month, but it’s gone on for quite a bit of time, which made me think ‘OK, maybe I should start taking this more seriously’.”

Sharon Brown, a graphic design teacher at the school, got the idea for the project from a former colleague who taught in Italy, one the countries worst hit by the pandemic, and had set up a similar project.

She said: “This is a really great opportunity to teach our kids digital graphics skills while at the same time honour those who have been out there as essential care workers.”