SPECIAL guest rapper Ty was one of six professional artists who helped run a black history workshop for 100 students from borough secondaries last month.

A banquet of activities, including African and street dance, steel pan playing, poetry, drama and rap sessions, was laid out before them.

Among the schools taking part in the one-day event at Waltham Forest Theatre were McEntee, Aveling Park, Connaught Girls, Norlington Boys, Willowfield and Holy Family College.

Artists included performance poet Teju, drama tutor Selina Jeremiah, E10 Youth Dance, the Agudze Dance Ensemble and Juma Entertainments.

Students from Aveling Park and Connaught wrote and performed their own poem, Sounds of Slavery.

One of the McEntee students said afterwards: "I did not know that I was good at these things. I now want to write raps", while another commented: "I enjoyed African dance most."

The workshop was the final event in a three-month programme founded by the Bridges House Trust Fund and organised by the Waltham Forest Arts in Education Network.

In October, a two-day workshop programme was held for 120 children from South Grove Primary, St Saviour's Primary, St Mary's CE Primary, Sybourn Junior and Coppermill Primary schools.

They learned about how toys are made from recycled materials in Ghana and also enjoyed African drumming and dance.

St Saviour's pupil Enitan Oluwayose said later: "African dance was good because it reminded me of what it was like in Nigeria."

Examples of toys made by the children were put on display across the borough in November.

The network also collaborated with WALFAIR, the local asylum and immigration rights group, in running writing and photography workshops at Edinburgh Primary and Heathcote Secondary schools on the topic of migration.

Examples of their work can be seen in WALFAIR's Making Routes exhibition at Vestry House Museum, Walthamstow Village, until December 24. It tells the stories of refugees and migrants in the borough.

Individual schools across Waltham Forest have enjoyed performances of poetry, rap, African dance, music, storytelling and steel pan drumming.