St Francis Church of England Primary School has collaborated with The Nature Effect to create a new space in their Early Years outdoor area. 

Having recently secured new funding for the school’s outdoor area, an Early Years teacher approached the local community interest company to see if they would collaborate to create a new project.

The Nature Effect work within educational, environmental, and economic systems to create more sustainable and healthy conditions in places where we live, work and play. The company worked with the school to visualise and create a new garden for the Early Years children which provided play, shelter and food areas.

A team of contractors from Outside Oxford built the new garden from scratch. Once they had set down the groundworks, volunteers from The Nature Effect set to work alongside pupils at the school, planting plants to complete the transformation of the old astroturf play area into a sustainable outdoor environment for children to enjoy.

Laura Burt from The Nature Effect said: “We had a great fun planting with the children in pairs and we were impressed with their team work how they helped each other. For many it was the first time they had planted anything.

“We designed the space to be educational, sensory and imaginative. We have started them on their journey with muddy hands. Let’s watch it grow and evolve.”