Students swapped Newham for New York last week when they attended a United Nations simulation conference.

Pupils from Stratford School Academy in Grosvenor Road, Forest Gate, debated some of the international community’s most pressing issues at the National High School Model United Nations (NHSMUN) Conference.

Items on the agenda included disarmament and international security as well as social, humanitarian and cultural issues.

The NHSMUM Conference is part of Model United Nations, an educational simulation and academic competition in which students learn about the United Nations, international relations and diplomacy. It aims to teach research, public speaking, debating and writing skills.

Carol Gray, who runs Model United Nations at Stratford School, said: “Our pupils were professional in presenting their arguments on their researched topics.

“It was an amazing once in a lifetime experience for our pupils to experience the conference on such a large international scale.”

Thirteen pupils from the school, who were randomly selected by NHSMUN to represent Barbados at the conference, travelled to New York for the five day trip which was attended by 3,800 pupils from 160 schools.

Along with participating in debates, the students heard from guest speakers as well as submitting position papers, for which they were commended for their research and writing skills.

Speaking about the conference, pupil Abhinav Bejoy, 15, said: “Coming from east London, this does mean a lot to me.

“Being at NHSMUM has enabled me to build up international relations and network with people from all over the world. I have enjoyed the overall experience.”