The maths and English departments at North Shropshire College pulled out all the stops to celebrate National Pi Day last week.

Staff and students took part in activities to celebrate the irrational number, calculated as the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, and extending into an infinite number of decimal places.

From planting circular flower arrangements to playing circle-based sports, the day showed students the importance of maths and its context in day-to-day life.

Freshly made pies were also available at the college’s refectory.

“This has been a wonderful opportunity for students to find out more about the mathematical symbol Pi, and also the importance of maths in everyday life,” said Jo Millington, the curriculum manager for math and English at the college.

The origins of the day lie in the way March 14 is written in the United States, which appears as 3/14 – similar to Pi’s numerical value, which is approximately 3.14159.