The final event in STAEDTLER’s year-long community programme saw schoolchildren from Abertillery Learning Community School planting a new hedgerow in the school grounds. The tree planting day was organised by Groundwork Wales with STAEDTLER providing the funding for 150 hedgerow trees and a representative, David Davies, to help the children plant the trees.

On Tuesday 6th December, 58 children from the school’s year 4 class planted 150 trees. The new school and outdoor space provided limited wildlife habitat, so planting a new hedgerow in the school grounds looks to improve this and increase the biodiversity around the school for years to come.

Groundwork Wales worked in partnership with Nadine Morgan from Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council who supported the project and also helped the children plant the trees. The aim of the partnership is to create schools that promote biodiversity, improve pupils’ understanding of the natural world and create wildlife habitats in all the school grounds across Blaenau Gwent.

Nadine Morgan, Blaenau Gwent Borough Council said, “the Tillery Street Campus of the new Abertillery Learning Community is a new school build completed in Autumn 2016. As a result, the grounds need to be re-established for biodiversity and it was therefore highly beneficial to plant a native mixed hedgerow within the school grounds to add to the diversity. The tree planting session was very successful, we achieved the aims of creating a native hedgerow and the year 4 children were very engaged and enthused by the activity.”