Our conservation project here at Aspire is well underway. More bird boxes and feeders have been installed over the last few weeks around the school grounds and it is planned to have the BASC team leading new workshops once more over the next few months.
The next phase taking place during this Autumn term will see our students plant new tree species on the school fields to support biodiversity. After consultation with the SLT team, PE and science departments, the conservation officers from Groundwork UK and the Woodland Trust have drawn a final map of the proposed planting sites for the first year, with a recommendation that we plant a hedgerow along the field boundary near the road, all the way to end of the second field, to provide cover and wind shelter to the students attending PE sessions, all the way to the long jump area.
The final calculation for the first year of planting is that just over 3,000 whips and 10 fruit trees will be needed to cover the proposed space, which will provide opportunities for the whole of KS3 and Alternative Provision students to join the sessions. This is not a small undertaking and has taken a lot of planning so as not to cause any disruption to the academic timetable. The project will cost in the region of £20,000 for the first year alone, but will support the extension of the Science and Entitlement Curriculum, providing invaluable opportunities for our students.
It has been proposed that the first session with Groundwork UK be on the 14th of December with the intention of booking more sessions after Christmas.
You can see an aerial view of the proposed work by clicking here.