PUPILS at Lifton Community Primary School, just outside Launceston, will be able to revel in nature, wildlife and improved outdoor learning with their new pond and nature reserve area, which was officially opened recently, writes Rosie Cripps.

The chair of the Friends of Lifton School (FOLS), Sarah Hallett, and headteacher, Melanie Cripps, were delighted to be able to welcome parents and supporters of the school to view the new pond area, which will assist pupils during their forest school learning — an important provision of education in the school’s ethos.

With natural greenery and a brand new fence surrounding the pond, it is hoped the area will be a haven for wildlife and plants.

Sarah, who also works for South West Lakes Trust, is keen to promote the importance of outdoor education for children. Leading the pond project, she created the natural greenery by simply scattering wildflower seeds and planting daffodil bulbs in the patches of land by the water, whilst consulting with builders to construct and improve the existing pond area.

Sarah said: “When I took over as chair (for FOLS), Mrs Cripps said she would like a pond. We already had a pond area here at the back of the school, and I just thought we could rescue it — but it was beyond that.”

The Friends then approached the school’s PTA (parent teacher association) to look at raising money to make their vision a reality. With the assistance of the local Launceston Tesco Bags of Help scheme, which ended up providing £4,000 towards the project, and other fundraising events, the school was able to finally see the creation of the pond.

Sarah continued: “As I work for South West Lakes, I approached the conservation manager and we talked through the ways in which to go about doing this. The bid was more successful and so we began planning and looking at the design.

“We came first with the Tesco’s Bags of Help scheme, so then we got a contractor in. We had nothing on paper — it was all planned verbally between myself and the builder.”

The Friends applied for the Bags of Help funding in July 2017, which was successful. The school was then included in the scheme’s fundraising period between November and December, and was then awarded the sum of £4,000.

“We’ve got natural weeds, and I created the greenery by throwing down seeds basically,” Sarah said. “We tried to rescue as much of the natural pond weeds as possible. Homeleigh Garden Centre in Launceston donated some plants, so thank you to them.

“We have tadpoles in there now. We want to try and attract all sorts of wildlife if we can — water animals like newts and frogs; foxes maybe, because it’s a water source; water beetles and insects. We’re going to try and get some of the old weeds out, and Mrs Glen (chair of governors of the school) will be donating some weeds for us to use.”

Shirley Vanstone, Tesco Launceston community champion, was on hand to present the cheque for £4,000 at the opening of the pond.

Speaking to those present, Mrs Cripps said: “Thanks to everyone for coming and to FOLS for raising the money for this, and of course Tesco for providing such a generous amount towards this project. This will make a tremendous difference for the children, providing safe pond dipping and outdoor learning education.

“A big thanks to Sarah for working so hard and leading this, and to everyone from the Friends of Lifton School for promoting the fundraising on Facebook.”

As the ribbon was cut by Mrs Cripps, a group of children from the school’s Foundation Unit excitedly peered over the fence into their new pond, which will provide them with many experiences to learn about local wildlife and nature as they grow within the school environment.

Mrs Cripps said: “The school is really excited about having this new pond area for the children to use during forest school time. We have also bought lots of lovely equipment to use for pond dipping and forest school lessons.

“Outdoor learning is very important to all of us at Lifton school. It is lovely to see the children enjoy learning in the fresh air, where they can be free and independent.”