Weeks of hard work have paid off for Bromsgrove School pupils following a win at the Malvern Spring Garden Show 2012.
Children of all ages at Bromsgrove School worked together to create the award winning “Bee Happy” garden. Designed by Year 9 Geography pupils to encourage pollination and plant growth for bees and butterflies, the garden won first prize for an award sponsored by the Council for Protection of Rural England and the Outdoor Learning Initiative, as well as being ‘Highly Commended’ by the Royal Horticultural Society.
The construction of the garden involved a wide span of age groups with the Senior School pupils leading the younger children in their tasks along with teachers Liz Finlay and Judith Holden, who led the project. Pupils from all three sections of Bromsgrove School contributed to the project. The garden layout included hexagonal planters constructed by the Design and Technology department at the School to mirror the image of honeycomb, filled with home grown plants nurtured by the pupils. An engraved poem was provided by talented Preparatory School pupils and beautiful handmade ceramic pollen grains and tiles were made by Year 9 artists, along with a stunning mosaic created by children at the Pre-Preparatory School. The garden was designed with the guidance of Olivia Kirk Green (Chelsea Gold Landscape designer) and School contractors Speller Metcalfe who purveyed the reclaimed materials for construction from their building works at the School.
Judith Holden, who teaches Geography at the Senior School, said: “The garden has been recognised as a fully integrated outdoor learning initiative, combining Geography, Art, Design Technology and English classes to promote learning and understanding of sustainability and what a difference we can all make, even on a small scale.”
“It was a real joy to see the enthusiasm of the children for the project, and how proud they were of their efforts in not only designing but building the garden from scratch. They were then able to talk about their experiences to the general public and help raise awareness of such an important issue.”