Having been at a Catholic school for the past 15 years, the Easter period has been very much ingrained in my life.

I've become slightly desensitised to Easter (simply because I take it for granted).

For many it represents a very important Christian festival, with the season even interlinking with other religious significances, such as the similarly occurring Passover in Judaism.

Whilst there is still a whole array of meanings and significance in this modern day and age for a religious festival, the period has extended to the general consumer.

The high street is very much cashing in on Easter, with many arguing that it degrades its purpose and even detracts from the actual celebration.

The holiday has been opened to all in a much more materialistic way, stripping it of its meaning and leaving us with a confusing contradiction of ethics.

The lack of interesting and engaging education surrounding topics such as religion could be the main cause of many cases of ignorance in the UK today, with many school children even regarding it as a dud and useless lesson.

The ignorance of the public continues during Easter - we are happy to accept what is given to them, face value, resulting in Easter's meaning being forgotten (hello, Easter bunny!).

While there is little we can do to combat this (as that would essentially be an attempt to combat capitalism as a whole), as individuals we can take the time to educate ourselves for the sake of respecting others and the different religions of our society (whether you are religious or not).

This mutual respect will hopefully make the transition of old traditions into modern-day much more smooth, not only eradicating ignorance and hostility, but making celebrations such as Easter open to everyone for the right reasons.