Brighton schoolgirls celebrate Chinese New Year with Boris Johnson

Martha Morrison and Tinayeishe Mapfumo, who are both pupils from Roedean School, travelled to London with their Chinese language teacher, Lin Wu, to take part in a Downing Street reception for the British Chinese community.

Around 30 pupils from across the country were chosen to attend the event, celebrating the lunar new year, which lasts until February 8.

Martha and Tinayeishe were asked to attend because of their love of learning Chinese.

During the celebrations, the prime minister watched performances by bright red and yellow dragons before mingling with the pupils and learning how to write Chinese characters by brush pen.

Tinayeishe Mapfumo said: “I really enjoyed visiting 10 Downing Street and seeing the prime minister in person.

“I felt very special to be one of the children who greeted him in Mandarin and very privileged to have been in the same room as him and other important Chinese officials like the Chinese ambassador.

“The dragon dance was captivating and at the end Boris Johnson painted the eyes of the dragon and it was really interesting to see more of the Chinese culture and tradition.

“The prime minister seemed very friendly and welcoming and looked like he really enjoyed embracing the Chinese culture.”

Martha Morrison said that the visit was an ‘amazing experience’.

“I got to try new Chinese foods that I have never tasted before and learn more about Chinese culture,” she said.

“I think being around so many Chinese speaking people has helped me a bit with my learning, as I got to listen to pronunciation.

I feel very lucky and grateful to have attended, and it was very inspiring to see Mr Johnson in person.”

Roedean Chinese department has also celebrated the success of two of its pupils who scored first and second place in the 20th World Chinese Essay Writing Competition.

Year 9 pupil Yoyo Zhang won first place in the global competition with an essay on Confucius while Lareina Yang placed second.