A display of 31 images of children just as they leave primary school, and before they move onto secondary school, by photographer Rachel Molina opens at the V&A Museum of Childhood, Bethnal Green, on 10 June 2017.

The transition from primary to secondary education is a first step towards adulthood, filled with hopes and anxieties, worries and aspiration. A time of transition, exciting and frightening in equal measure. A time when children start to make their own decisions, find their own way, contemplate the consequences of their actions. A time to make new friends, learn new things, not just academically, but about themselves about their own minds and bodies. Molina’s work, a collection of intimate photographic portraits and testimonies neither sentimental nor judgemental, gives a unique voice to these children who are often Seen But Not Heard.

The project was photographed in the summer term of 2015 as all the 31 children, from various schools around SE London, were embarking on the big step to secondary school. The inspiration for the project came from Molina’s son who himself was changing schools. As she worked on the project it occurred to her quite how daunting and often scary the experience can be. ‘I believe it’s the biggest educational change most kids, in this country, have in their life and I was keen to explore how this universal experience affects them.’ Rachel Molina

Admission is FREE

www.vam.ac.uk/moc

Submitted by Joanna Bolitho