Somersham Primary School

About Our School : What's New Archive

Going Green-fingered!

15 December 2006

Somersham Primary School: Wildlife and Environmental Outdoor Classroom Project

As a key part of the school’s ongoing improvement focus to develop a creative and stimulating environment for the benefit of our children and the wider village community, we are launching a major project to bring back into use an area of the school’s site.

Originally created from building deposits arising from the construction of a new classroom block in the mid 1990s, the school’s Nature Garden comprised a sunken pond, natural pathways and compost area on an 8 square metre site enclosed by chain link fencing. It is situated in a pleasant, private patch of land, set back 3 metres from the southern access path that connects the school’s main entrance from Parkhall Road with the field and rear playground.

The site has become overgrown and is used infrequently, as there are concerns about children’s safety with open water (0.75 metres maximum depth), invasive plants and weeds and other trip hazards (see attached photo gallery).

With renewed interest in the potential of the school’s site to promote practical, first hand learning opportunities, and an appreciation of diversity in environmental areas of the curriculum, we are planning to develop this area into a Wildlife and Environmental Outdoor Classroom over an 18 month period, beginning in Autumn 2006. The project will be advanced in two phases: preparation of the site (Spring-Summer 2007) and construction and planting (Autumn-Winter 2007-08).

This complements the school’s present status as a Health Promoting School and Eco School, with experience of successfully delivering related community projects such as an outdoor shaded classroom (2004); sand play garden (2004), activity apparatus linked to the school’s trim trail (2002; 2005). The children have been actively involved in the planning, designing and commissioning of these projects.

The Wildlife and Environmental Outdoor Classroom Project will be co-ordinated by children, staff, governors and parents on the school’s Eco Council and Gardening Club (see attached photo gallery). They will work in partnership with a variety of local and national charities, businesses and wildlife organisations, from which expertise and funding will be sought throughout. The starting point for Phase 1 will be a bid for capital grant funding from the National Lottery’s Breathing Spaces Scheme.

The area will be used throughout the school day (including before and after school) by classes and groups of children, both within the daily curriculum and by clubs such as the Gardening and Bird Watching teams and Eco Schools Council. We hope to engage the wider community by developing partnerships with village groups such as the Parish Council (tree and shrub planting), allotment society and gardening club, and with local businesses (plants nurseries). Our partner pre-schools and after-school club will also be invited to make use of this valuable and exciting learning resource.

Return to the news archive

Swine Flu Update

Tel: (01487) 840412 / Fax: (01487) 741194 / Emergency Site No. (07905) 945411
E-mail: office@somersham.cambs.sch.uk / Website: www.somersham.cambs.sch.uk
Copyright © Daniel Bates
18,213 visits to this site from 4,033 unique different people in 2009 (13,561 from 2,954 in 2008!)