Students at Arc School Ansley have been enjoying putting down roots thanks to a local allotment society.
Just a short walk from the school are Ansley Allotments, in the heart of the village. There the Ansley Village Allotment Society have welcomed pupils and provided plots free of charge. As well as providing the plots, they have been very generous in sharing their knowledge and experience in growing flowers and vegetables as well as their seeds and plants. They have also helped look after the plots while the children cannot be there. All of this is greatly appreciated by the young people.
The members of Arc Gardening Club work together as a team to get gardening jobs done and share together in success and failures! They are learning that things don’t always grow and do well but that that is part of life and to be persistent and keep going. The crops include pumpkins for Halloween, beans, flowers for the bees and insects, mint, potatoes, tomatoes and rhubarb. The idea is to bring back as many as possible to school to use in cooking lessons or to give to the school chef to include in school dinners.
Everyone is enjoying the fresh air and exercise, including Barney the school dog who loves to jump through the corn fields and is a great support to the students. There is a real sense of group togetherness and relationship building as well as creating an understanding of the wider world.