What
A primary school in Hackney has been turned into a wildlife-friendly natural oasis thanks to the local community and Hackney-based charity, Natural Neighbours.
The project at Daubeney Primary School in Homerton has seen the creation of a large wildlife pond, a Hop Garden with fruit and vegetable raised beds and fruit trees, the replacement of tonnes of lifeless plastic grass with a wildlife-friendly clover lawn and woodchip paths, and the planting of 16 trees on the asphalt playground to provide vital shade during increasingly hot summers. Dozens of residents of all ages from neighbourhoods around the school – including current and former pupils – helped with the green transformation.
Our work has been generously supported thanks to funds raised by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, the Tree Council’s Branching Out Fund and a crowdfunding campaign whose donations were doubled by the Aviva Community Fund – as well as construction support services company, Clipfine, who donated tools and labour.
“It’s been incredible working with the school and alongside so many parents, carers and neighbours as we’ve transformed the grounds into a much healthier space that nourishes our wellbeing and benefits our wildlife.
“Natural Neighbours demonstrates the amazing things people can do to support wildlife together at places like schools and community gardens, inspiring them to add to the habitat network by doing something similar appropriate to their outdoor space at home or work.”
Natural Neighbours director, Julian Kirby
“As a parent I feel that outdoor education is incredibly important, so it’s been a joy to contribute to this project and see how even urban areas like Daubeney’s can have incredible outdoor spaces where children can learn from and enjoy a thriving ecosystem.”
Daubeney School PCTA co-Chair, Corissa Robinson
“As a family run business committed to supporting the communities we work in it has been a pleasure to help Daubeney School and Natural Neighbours add shade-giving, wildlife-friendly trees to their asphalt playground.”
Eamon MacCarron – Director of Clipfine
Where
The project took place at Daubeney Primary School in Homerton, Hackney, and represents an ongoing partnership between Natural Neighbours, the school and its wider communities to bring health-giving nature into everyday life for everyone.
Why
Regular experience of nature – watching butterflies flutter, hearing birds sing, marvelling at the slow progress of frog spawn through tadpoles to baby frogs – is proven to improve physical and mental health. Too many city dwellers have little or no daily opportunity to connect with nature, making nature-poverty a recognised form of inequality and deprivation. Natural Neighbours works with schools and community leaders, bringing people together to support and enjoy wildlife at communal places and at home and work across the neighbourhood.
What Achieved
The project successfully established multiple habitats, including replacing lifeless plastic grass with pollinator-friendly clover lawn and other flowering plants, shrubs and trees, building a huge wildlife pond, constructing new raised fruit and veg beds for the budding young gardeners, and adding new wildlife-friendly trees for shade in the sun-exposed asphalt playground. Most importantly, we brought people together under this common cause, laying the foundations for more community projects in the new year. These will include making bug hotels, bat and bird boxes, and setting up local groups to share skills, plants and tools. We’ve added a significant new habitat site for wildlife and enriched and connected communities across the area.
