Wave of winners
30/06/2005
Reporters and photographers are invited to attend a special prize-giving ceremony on Tuesday 5 July at West Denton Fire Station, West Denton Way, Newcastle upon Tyne from 12.30pm. There will be a fire fighting demonstration at 12:45pm with the announcement of winners from 1:15pm. There will be props available for photographs in keeping with the selection of prizes listed below.
The waiting game to find out the winners of a competition is nearly over for hundreds of young people across the North East.
More than 500 youngsters from Berwick down to North Yorkshire and across to the Pennines, aged between nine and 16, entered Northumbrian Water’s Making Waves competition. Seventeen projects have been shortlisted, involving more than 200 young people.
Shortlisted groups are from Northumberland: Blyth. County Durham: Chester le Street, Consett, Great Lumley, Newton Aycliffe and Spennymoor. Tyne & Wear: Gateshead, Newcastle upon Tyne, North Shields and Sunderland. Cleveland: Guisborough. Teesside: Stockton.
Sir Fred Holliday, Northumbrian Water’s Chairman, said: “The competition has provided entrants with an exciting opportunity to take positive action and improve their local community or environment. It is wonderful to see the enthusiasm and talent of these youngsters who have the future in their hands. As a company this competition is an excellent example of how we are immersed in the local communities we serve.”
Winners of the competition, which has been co-ordinated by the Young People’s Trust for the Environment, will be announced at a special ceremony next week where some exciting prizes will be won! The celebrity guest is Terry Nutkins, presenter of The Really Wild Show. Prizes include a weeks environmental holiday in the Lake District for the overall winner, the chance to be a fire-fighter for a day, an adventurous training weekend with the Army, a VIP day on a pilot boat from the Port of Tyne and a bellboating trip to the Tees Barrage.
Projects have been entered into five categories – most improved project, best environment project, best citizenship project, most innovative project and biggest impact project. There
are also two age categories – nine to 12 years old and 13 to 16 years old.
Northumbrian Water’s Making Waves initiative is being supported by The Army, DFDS Seaways, Durham Agency Against Crime, Durham Cricket Board, Mercantile Building Society, Northumbrian Coalition Against Crime, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Port of Tyne, Tyne & Wear Fire Service, Castlegate Quay Watersports Centre, Tyne Tees Television, Tees Active, Bridge Club and Stockton North Achievement Zone.
The shortlisted projects are listed below – please contact the relevant person listed with each project for further information and to arrange a photograph.
Best Environmental Project Category:
Stephenson Way Primary School – Newton Aycliffe – The Busy Bees – aged nine to 11. Environmental group turning an unused grass area on school grounds into a wildlife garden that can be used as a quiet area at playtimes, during the summer and to help attract wildlife. Native and wild plants were planted and the project was funded by a bring and buy sale.
Contact – Lorraine Dando – 01325 300 324.
Abbey Hill School – Stockton – bird feeding project – a special needs group aged 11 to 16. To provide feed, shelter and nesting sites for birds at two commercial sites that were willing to form a partnership – Sedgefield Racecourse and the Holiday Park. More than 30 nest boxes and feeders were made by the group and erected on trees in the woodland area. The group also sowed wild flower seeds, planted shrubs and trees to create a better environment for birds. This has resulted in a large increase in the bird population in the area.
Contact – Neil Ezard – 01642 552 528.
Thornhill School – Sunderland – Tree for Life Garden – aged 13 to 16. Trees have been planted on a grassed marshy area at the side of the all-weather pitch, which has been unused. The group raised funding through donations and grants. Thirty hazel twigs were planted to grow into a hedge and 52 other broadleaf native tree saplings were planted.
Contact – Trevor Harvey – 0191 553 7735.
Castlegreen Community School – Sunderland – clean up and replant Hylton Dene – aged 13 to 16. Part of Hylton Dene has been cleaned up and replanted. Funds were raised by selling pot plants and used to buy wild flower seed. Vandalised fences have been sanded and repainted.
Contact – Sally Dobson – 0191 553 5335.
Best Citizenship Project Category:
Westfield School – Newcastle upon Tyne - The Percy Hedley School Sensory Garden Project 2005 – aged ten to 11. A sensory garden has been created at the Percy Hedley Foundation in Forest Hall – a school for children with a wide-range of special needs. The garden was planted in an overgrown, unused area and included bright and fragrant flowers, that the children could smell and touch. Wind chimes have been tied to trees for sound. There are other fun and interactive things like a pottery mosaic, woven willow, fun scarecrows and wall silhouettes.
Contacts – Margot Branson – 0191 285 2316 or Sandra Phelps – 0191 266 5491.
Gateshead Crossroads Young Carers – Gateshead - sensory zone at Norwood Nature Site – aged six to 18. The sensory garden was designed for the carers and their families as well as the community at large. The group came up with their own designs during workshops which professional artists then turned into sculptures. A dry stone wall has been prepared and planted with wildflowers and aromatic plants, the hedgerows have been extended and wheelchair access made more accessible. The group also got to participate in tile making and stone carving whilst experiencing and learning about the nature reserve.
Contact – Jill Stevens – 0191 478 2423.
St Teresa’s Buddy Zone- Newcastle upon Tyne – improvement of the Buddy Zone – aged ten to 11. Children act as ‘buddies’ to reception children. The Buddy Zone is an area where only these two groups can meet. The Buddy Zone is a flagged area of the playground where the group wanted to introduce some plants and wildlife. The group weeded the area and cleared the bushes, taking down high fences and replacing them with lower ones so that everyone can see the new garden. They installed new benches, plant pots, a water fountain and new plants. Donations of plants came from B&Q.
Contact – John Harrison – 0191 265 5076.
Tyne View Community Primary School – Gateshead - improvement of the ‘Bankies’ – aged nine – 12. The Bankies is an area of wasteland between Rose Street and the River Tyne in Gateshead. The project was to make a piece of artwork to create a gateway to the ‘Bankies’. Areas of overgrown trees have been cleared to make way for new growth. Some replanting has been carried out and the group has learnt about the work of the Forestry Commission. Plant and animal life near the riverbank has also been investigated and the group visited a local mill to learn about the concept of water generated power. All of this has been used as the basis for a sculpture and art work with the additional aim of one-day creating an outdoor classroom area.
Contact – Sue Dawson – 0191 477 4805.
Most Innovative project category:
Silx Teen Bar – Blyth – design of a mural - aged 13. Mural has been designed to brighten up a dingy passageway in Silx Teen Bar, a meeting point for teenagers who come from deprived backgrounds. They have made a mural of Blyth harbour, the beach and St Mary’s Lighthouse following day trips to the areas. The group made their own designs and painted the best ones onto the walls.
Contact – Linda Parrell or Jackie Long – 01670 351 356.
Northgate Junior School – Guisborough - seaside garden project – aged ten to 11. Improvement of a school quiet area into a better wildlife habitat and more of a seaside experience for pupils. The group have added extra plants that are compatible with a rocky soil environment, to encourage wildlife, and other objects like crab pots and fishing nets to make it feel more like the seaside. They have also designed and made murals for the walls with seaside themes. Funds have been raised by selling bird feeders made by the garden club and by holding a seaside disco.
Contact – Pat Anderson – 01287 635 728.
St Teresa’s Primary School - Newcastle upon Tyne – swamplands - aged ten to 11. A bird hide has been created to provide children visiting the wooded wetland on school grounds with the opportunity of viewing birds. Bird feeding stations and nest boxes have also been built. Having discovered that buying a hide would be too costly, the group constructed models of potential shelters and hides that they could make at the school. They decided on a camouflage tepee made from 20-foot sycamore trunks they cut down from the woodland themselves, which they then covered in netting. The group made their own bird feeders, cleared away non-native Japanese Knotweed and coppiced the sycamore in the woodland – all ready for bird spotting a bigger and more varied population.
Contact – John Harrison – 0191 265 5076.
Biggest Impact Project Category:
Great Lumley Duke of Edinburgh School – Great Lumley, County Durham - cloakroom repaint - aged 13 to 14. The group renovated the cloakroom of their local community centre. They cleared out the old coat hangers and junk from the cloakroom and then redecorated the area including a mural on one wall, which depicts local landmarks and school emblems. Children from the junior and infant school also added their handprints in paint.
Contact – Christine Young – 0191 410 8509.
Cestria Primary School – Chester le Street, County Durham – brighten up schoolyard - aged eight to 11. The group formed a council with representatives from each year group. All ideas and problems encountered were referred to the council for a vote. Twenty plant pots were placed in school yards at both the infants and junior schools and were shared out between each year group, who were responsible for the flowers and shrubs that were planted. Funds have been raised for the plants and pots by holding a sponsored swim.
Contact – Toni Robson – 0191 388 2483.
West Walker Primary School – Newcastle upon Tyne - garden project – aged nine to 11. The group, made up of six boys with emotional, behavioural and social difficulties regenerated an over-grown area of the school grounds. The group worked together to clear the ground, lay new plant boxes and fill them with soil and woodchip, and chose and sewed vegetable and flower seeds. They made their own paintings based on life on the River Tyne for the walls and made mosaic stepping-stones. They also created a wildflower meadow, a rockery, and a log pile to attract wildlife. The boys also installed a compost bin to take fruit and vegetable peel from the infant school and they have lots more plans for the future.
Contact – Maggie Milburn – 0191 262 4130.
St Patrick’s School – Consett, County Durham - clean up garden and create a sensory garden – aged seven to 11. The school council group made up of eight children decided to renovate the school garden, making it more wildlife friendly and have included a sensory area for the special education needs unit and the rest of the school to enjoy. The group carried out weeding, clearing, tidying and cutting back of overgrown trees. They installed a pergola, bridge and brick wishing well, bird houses and wind chimes. They have also laid down steps and paths and planted more colourful and fragrant flowers. The group raised funds for the new plants by holding an Easter egg competition, a raffle and by asking for plant donations from parents.
Contact – Victoria Judd – 01207 503 982.
Most Improved Project Category:
Ashleigh School – North Shields - sensory garden – aged 12 with severe learning difficulties. The group of five students decided to clean up an unused, messy area of the school grounds and transform it into a sensory garden. The boys weeded, planted new flowers and seeds, painted the walls and benches and put down a gravel path. They also put up bird feeders and wind chimes and a birdbath. They got their inspiration by visiting the garden centre and a garden and they spoke to gardening experts about the right plants for the shady area. Funds were raised by holding a cake sale and raffle and by getting sponsorship to carry out odd jobs at school.
Contact – Kimberley McHugh – 0191 200 6339.
St Charles’ RCVA Primary School – Spennymoor, County Durham - changing cloakroom – aged six to 11. Having held a student forum about the best way to help the school community, the forum decided on redecorating a dingy cloakroom. Two teams – the girls and the boys – were set up and came up with a range of designs. They then held a Mufti Day (non-uniform day), raising over £200 with games and a talent show and bring and buy sales in order to fund the redecorating project. The girls team sanded down the woodwork, shelves and benches, put on undercoats and then painted the benches and shelves bright rainbow colours. The boy’s team painted the walls light green and light blue and a professional plumber came and fixed the faulty water fountain.
Contact – Sue Mitchell – 01388 814 285.
For further general information please contact Cara Hall, Northumbrian Water, on 0191 301 6720 or Peter Littlewood, Young People’s Trust for the Environment, on 01483 539 600.