Abbey CE Academy thank Daventry Rotary Club for generous donation to build Reflection Garden

Reflection and pause for thought are the order of the day at Abbey CE Academy in Daventry. A new Reflection Garden is being established at the school, which is part of the David Ross Education Trust family.

Thanks to a generous donation of two new garden benches and a head planter, together with soil and bulbs from the Daventry Rotary Club, the new Reflection Garden will create a calm and spiritually nourishing space for children to use. As a Church of England School, reflection areas are an important part of the school and the new garden will become a cherished space for the whole school community.

Pupils and staff welcomed members of the Daventry Rotary Club who rolled up their sleeves to help the children plant bulbs in the planter as the first exciting step to establishing this new space in school. The children will continue to nurture the plants as they grow and enjoy the benefits as they see the fruits of their work.

The Daventry Rotary Club has used money raised by its annual Santa Sleigh event for the donation, which involves volunteers going around the local community with Santa on his sleigh to fundraise for the club.

Principal of Abbey CE Academy, Mrs Godfrey said:

“We are incredibly grateful to the Rotary Club for this generous donation. I look forward to seeing the flowers grow and the garden develop further to enable the children to enjoy quiet reflection and spirituality when they choose to. I hope to continue to build the relationship between the school and the Rotary Club in the future.”

Tilly-Mae, aged 10, a pupil at Abbey CE Academy said:“This is good for the school and will be a place where children can share their feelings.”

Jim Shoesmith, from the Daventry Rotary Club said:"We, at Rotary, and all the people of Daventry are pleased and proud that the money raised by our Santa Sleigh runs has been put to such a good use; gardens and plants satisfy people on so many levels: pleasure in seeing what you plant grow and bloom, pleasure in connecting with nature and pleasure in providing a calm area for spiritual reflection."