Shropshire primary school welcomes county's sheriff to open new garden
Pupils at a school have been celebrating their new garden – thanks to a lot of hard work and some generous locals.
Sheriffhales Primary School welcomed a special guest to officially mark the opening of its new garden area, which has been four months in the making.
Headteacher, Justine Keeling-Paglia, said it had been a community effort, involving pupils, staff, parents, volunteers, and donations from local firms.
The county's High Sheriff, Mandy Thorn MBE, was welcomed as a special guest to see the garden in its full glory.
Mrs Keeling-Paglia said the Parents, Teachers and Friends Association and its chair Helen Duffy had played a major part in the success, along with the members of the Men in Sheds branch from Madeley.
They have transformed the area into an allotment and forest school.
Mrs Keeling-Paglia said: "Virtually all of the requirements for this allotment area have been donated for free.
"We had not only physical donations of tools, plants, soil, but had a lot of time donated as well.
"Men in Sheds, they are fantastic guys who have given us hours and hours of their time."
She said the Men in Sheds had made a stack of trellises, planters, potting tables, and more for the area.
The school also received a grant from the Co-op's community fund, while the Bradford Estates provided tools, a shed and a fire-pit, and Dobbies provided compost, plants and shrubs.
VHGC Ltd also helped, doing the ground work at a reduced rate, and providing a lorry load of top soil to fill the raised beds.
Mrs Keeling-Paglia said the children had got involved by shovelling two tipper trucks full of soil, and had planted everything – with tomatoes and other vegetables already growing in the garden.
She said: "It has been a wonderfully unifying project because every single child has been involved. They have all left their spade prints on the project.
"The PTFA, all of the staff, lots of the parents, we have had weekend working parties where parents have come in and wheeled things about."
She added: "Things look lovely and also the wider community, particularly Men in Sheds and the companies that have donated, it has been phenomenal. For us as a little school it has made us feel quite special.
"I can't tell you how much the children come alive, they just love being outside and pottering in the garden, it is really heart-warming."
