Please see our Instagram/click on 'IN THIS SECTION GARDEN/GARDEN & GROW CLUB' to see some of our activities! 

Garden and Grow meet Friday pm

Garden & Grow is a responsive outdoor session to help children learn about and experience nature; how things grow and all the wellbeing, learning and language benefits that come with that. We aim to reuse, recycle and reduce waste as much as possible by linking with the local community and businesses. This ethos comes from the volunteers before us (Sarah and Sue) and fits with the school’s vision, values, and culture.

Working in agreement with the school, following advice from Mark at the Wildlife Trust/criteria from EM in Bloom, the aim has been to create outdoor learning spaces to facilitate meaningful activities including those from organisations like the Wildlife Trust and RSPB. Alongside this, the Bloom criteria and donations have helped shape spaces to be attractive and interesting for the children and school community (hopefully!).

We now have a range of really usable spaces – a pond, log piles, sensory garden, speech, language and communication/story areas/curriculum working areas, bee, bug hotels, butterfly and moth areas, Hugelkultur beds for learning about water conservation and growing in a changing climate, links with the school kitchen and curriculum - herb/school kitchen garden, grasses (in the making) at the front that are drought-tolerant, a Belonging and Caring planter, and some veg patches where we can grow a few things to sell/giveaway like nobbly pumpkins or rhubarb. We have good links with members of the community, conservation groups (Nottinghamshire Bats, Wildlife Trust, Grasshoppers) and local businesses.

We’ve had amazing help from volunteers, families and members of the local community, donations from parents and carers, local garden centres and other businesses, and BSFA have kindly supported some big items like the fence round the pond.

Please contact Angela Dunning or the school office if you would like to be involved, it's a great way to work outside in nature with the children, get some exercise/have fun in the fresh air and be part of the Bleasby ABC vision!