Our Projects

Your time and generous donations are used for a number of projects. Below you can see what we are currently focusing on, how past fundraising has been used and the SMRP PTFA 'wish list'.

Outdoor Project

Overall vision

To reclaim three existing green spaces so that they can be utilised for lessons, play times and forest school sessions and enjoyed by our whole school community through a regular gardening club and special events. The project will focus on three key areas: school house garden, memorial garden, and greenhouse area.

Goals and Objectives

To breathe new life in to the existing outdoor spaces
To provide a teaching space for a whole class to learn outdoors (30 children)
To give all children easy access to a natural environment within the school
To encourage wildlife and biodiversity in to school grounds
To promote gardening, outdoor learning and climate awareness
To provide an outdoor space for children who don’t have gardens
To provide a setting for nurture groups
To support wellbeing for children, families and teachers through outdoor activities and gardening
To create an outdoor space to run events/groups
To establish an inclusive gardening club open to all families of SMRP

Plan of Action

Establish what work needs to be done to clear the areas and make them safe and ready for use
Establish a 'wishlist' of needs so that the teachers are better equipped to use the spaces regularly
Establish a project group of staff and parents
Establish any outside organisations that can assist with clearance, maintenance and gardening knowledge
Fundraise

Last year a total of £9457.87 was raised to redevelop our outdoor spaces. This year there are 58 runners (teachers, parents and children) signed up to the AJ Bell Great Bristol Run 2024, of which we are hoping to raise 5K to support the purchase of the new fencing and trellis as well as forest school equipment and STEM resources for the garden. Please see our events page for more info

We are grateful to all the parents, carers and children that have helped along the way. Those who have pitched up and worked through the rain, frost and autumn leaves, we can all be immensely proud of the transformation and the benefits this will have for staff and children.

There are also plans to replace the fencing and trellis in the memorial garden so that this much loved reflective space can be opened up again in time for the summer terms.

If you would like to join a gardening group session please come along! We always need helpers and we would love more people to get involved. Meet at 10am at the top playground on the first Sunday of the month. Bring gloves and tools if you can.

Progress to date

November 2024 Updates

It has been a few months since Gardening Club last took place so this month the focus was on clearing up the outdoor spaces that the PTFA support to maintain, to help ensure these are safe and accessible for the children. Everyone did a fantastic job of clearing away the leaves and clearing out the pond 🍁🍂

This month it was great to see some new faces joining and we hope to see many more going forward. Research has shown there are associations with gardening and improved physical, social and mental health. https://assets.kingsfund.org.uk/f/256914/x/3f83d457a4/gardens_and_health_2016.pdf

June 2024 Updates

In June 2024 we had Angus from the Butterfly Conservation Project come in to help with the Outdoor Project. The Butterfly Conservation Project generously donated a number of plants that will encourage more butterflies to the space.

April 2024 Updates

April has been a busy month with our Outdoor Project. Thanks to all our wonderful helpers we have managed to tidy the memorial garden and get the space back to being useable for the children. This has included having the trellis replaced and clearing away all the weeds and overgrown plants.

Within the Wednesday afternoon sessions, we have manage to plant a variety of fruit and vegetables, such as runner beans, tomatoes, potatoes, strawberries, courgettes, cucumbers, and lavender, along with planting the herb garden. We have also managed to brighten up some of the planters at the front entrance to the school.

March 2024 Updates

Thanks to all those who came to help at the March gardening club. It is great to see such progress with the outdoor project. And it is amazing what a difference a lick of paint can make.

The plan for March is to start planting veggies, flowers, herbs and fruit trees. There are plans to create a small pond (in a Belfast sink) to attract wildlife and insects, plant wildflower seeds and paint a mural on the side of the tool shed. There are also plans to repair the fencing and trellis in the memorial garden so that it can be spruced up and made ready for the summer terms.

February 2024 Updates

During February half term a final clean up operation is organised with parents and children helping to load all the rubbish and green waste piles onto the clearance truck. The tool shed is cleared of ivy, repaired and painted, the beds are raked and mulched ready for planting and new planters are made for the greenhouse area.

January 2024 Update

A new structure is built in the school house garden. A fabulous addition to the garden, it provides a covered area for the children to work outdoors and a new water collection point. It was designed and installed by one of our parents, Tom Redfern, of Round Wood Design, Bristol. Tom also provided some new benches and logs around the firepit creating another usable area for a whole class to enjoy.

We win second place and receive a £1000 grant from the Tesco Stronger Starts scheme for our 'Outdoor Spaces - supporting the physical and mental wellbeing of our children.

We were also grateful for those that came to gardening club to help continue to maintain the outdoor space.

November 2023 Update

We would like to say a big thank you to those who came out to help on Sunday 5th November with a special thank you to:

- Tom Redfern at Roundwood Designs who donated the new fire pit benches and logs.

Jennie Smith and colleagues, from the Environment Agency, who kindly donated their time to make a start on the garden clearance.

Without volunteers we would not be able to maintain the wonderful outdoor spaces for the children to enjoy.

May 2023

A parent-led volunteer team from the Environment Agency spent a day clearing lots of debris and rubbish. They got the ball rolling before a monthly Sunday morning gardening group was set up to start the process of clearing the outdoor areas. Open to adults and children, SMRP families are invited to come and lend a hand to clear the leaves, cut back the overgrown beds, create compost areas and clear rubbish. Gardening group has continued throughout the year and this consistent approach has enabled us to manage this large project and achieve a complete overhaul of the school house garden and the greenhouse area.

SMRP parents and children run in the AJ Bell Great Bristol Run 2023 - the initial fundraising target of 4K is smashed and the crowdfunder goes on to raise a further 6K with support from Aviva Triple Match Funding Save Our Wild Isles Community Fund.

March 2023

The garden hadn't been looked after for a number of years so everything was very overgrown. The paths were inaccessible due to rubbish, mounds of leaves and brambles.A retired landscape architect, Robert Adams, kindly visited and provided a report of the plants, trees and landscaping, including recommendations for improvements and solutionsThe PTFA met with teachers to establish improvements and ideas so that the area could be used again for lessons and forest school (from Early Years to Year 6)

Teacher's Requests

Create a digging area

Planting areas for children to use

Seating for whole class around the firepit

Create shelter area against school house, workbenches underneath

Water access

Gardening storage near school house

Use slabs to create path through ’secret’ area

Buy metal watering cans (plastic break)

After school & lunch time gardening clubs

Bird feeder/bird houses

Bird bath

Cable drums

Our Wish List

We currently have the following on our wish list and work with the teachers throughout the year to support projects or resources that are needed:

- Dictionaries and thesaurus for every class

- Proper storage for our PA system

- New books for each class

- Early Years upgrade to outside area

- Dance/music/theatre workshops for all year groups

- Educational trips to Belmont Estate/Outdoor Education

PTFA Funded Activities

The Book Barn

The PTFA were able to donate over £3000 towards the furnishings and resources within the new Book Barn.

Drumming Workshops

At the end of Term 6 in 2024 the PTFA paid for Fab Drumming to come to the school and provide an a workshop for Years 2-5.

The money raised from the PTFA has also gone to help with the following:

- Breakfast Club Games

- Lightening equipment for the hall and discos

- A greenhouse and gardening equipment

- Skipping Ropes

- Paintbrushes for the Art Department

- Years 3-6 school play licence