Otumoetai Intermediate School played host to a cultural festival on Friday, with over 750 students bringing an international flavour to the carnival.

The school also catered for 30 Japanese students who have been visiting the region this week.

Photos: Bruce Barnard.

The festival, which ran from 11.30am-1.30pm, looked to bring the whole community together, and all funds raised from the event will go towards school facilities.

Otumoetai Intermediate School principal Henk Popping says: 'It was entirely organised by the students – they had to organise their own stalls and activities.

'The big thing was making sure that we celebrated all of the cultures in the school. The kids all got dressed up to represent those cultures and we gave out spot prizes for the best costumes.

'There was about 750 of our students here, plus another 30 Japanese students. And, of course, we've had lots of mums and dads and grandparents as well as some community members helping out.”

A local School Hopper bus was also on site giving out smart ride cards ahead of the launch of their new service which kicks off next term.

'The kids have been great and this is all for them,” adds Henk. 'It's good to have fun as a school and events like this bring us all together.”