Spring has sprung at an Ashington primary school following a generous donation from a local garden centre.
Wansbeck Garden Centre has kindly pledged hundreds of bedding plants to Bishopâs Primary Schoolâs Josephine Butler Campus for use in its flower garden.
The flower garden, which is tended by pupils as part of the schoolâs âGardening Gangâ is the centrepiece of the Academy Road-based campusesâ outdoor space; which also comprises a potted courtyard, a poly tunnel and an allotment area, complete with its own chickens, rabbit and ducks.
Using the donated plants, the children decided to update a planted version of the schoolâs logo using a mix of Stokesia and Lobelia to capture the purple and yellow colours of the Bishopâs crest.
âOur Gardening Gang is an immensely popular part of our enrichment and mental health and wellbeing programmes at Josephine Butler,â said Mrs Clare Marriott, Head of Campus at Bishopâs Primary School â Josephine Butler Campus.
âThe children enjoy working outdoors and seeing the difference that their work makes to the garden. Itâs also a great opportunity for us to teach the children about the importance of looking after the natural world around them.
âWeâre incredibly grateful to the staff at Wansbeck Garden Centre for their kind donation of so many flowers! Itâs really allowed our children to be creative and weâve had so many compliments from staff and parents about the work the children do outdoors. These generous donations mean we can continue to develop our curriculum and the community links that are so important to us.â
Nic Crofts, Plant Manager at Wansbeck Garden Centre, commented:
âAt Wansbeck Garden Centre, we pride ourselves on being an active part of our local community and regularly work with schools and other not-for-profit groups.
âWeâve had an unseasonably cold start to the year, which has meant that many of our plants which would usually have gone flying off the shelves have been sitting in our greenhouses. We would rather see these go to good use than get wasted, so we were delighted to support Josephine Butlerâs Gardening Gang with their flower display.â
Bishopâs Primary School â Josephine Butler Campus operates as part of Northumberland Church of England Academy Trust (NCEAT).
For more information, visit www.ncea.org.uk.