By Transform Our World Youth Engagement Officer, Leah 

This spring, the All Life Savers group at Old Park Primary School in Wednesbury in the West Midlands decided they wanted to encourage local wildlife to visit and make a home in their school grounds, while also growing food and herbs for their school and community.  

The school had just invested in a new set of garden planters and the group were ready to take on the challenge of planting and caring for the new school garden, so that the whole school would be able to enjoy it. 

To this end, they chose to decorate a wide range of beautiful bird, bee and bug houses and feeders, and put them up all around the new garden and forest school area to encourage wildlife to take residence.  

Alongside this, they opted to plant a variety of different herbs that are known to attract bees, such as borage, rosemary and thyme, so that they could help support flagging bee populations.  

They also planted fruits, including strawberries, currants, and gooseberries, which they hope to harvest and share with the rest of the school before the summer holidays. 

From the beginning of this project the group have been incredibly dedicated, working hard to research what plants and other materials would be needed to create a thriving wildlife garden for the school.  

They also showed wonderful artistic talent when it came to decorating the bird, bee and insect houses and feeders, which were painted in a kaleidoscope of colours, which will surely attract a wonderful array of different creatures! 

On the day we planted the garden, the group were worked sensibly together to get everything planted correctly and watered in, and have been caring for and regularly watering the garden ever since.

Their hard work has certainly paid off as all the new plants continue to thrive, and the group are so proud to have created a new natural space for the whole school and all future students to enjoy as well! 

Well done All Life Savers! 

Old Park Primary is supported by Transform Our World Youth Engagement Officer Leah, funded by #iWill.