Upney pupils praise new prize plot

Green-fingered pupils at a Barking primary school are enjoying mucking about in their new garden.

Pupils and staff prepare the garden and vegetable patch. Picture: Manor Junior School - Credit: Manor Junior School

Manor Junior School, in Sandringham Road, Barking, received £7,000 in grants to build the prize plot.

The site includes a vegetable patch and allotments, said teacher and eco schools coordinator Ben Tunnicliffe.

“These children will face huge environmental challenges in their future and we feel that this eco garden will give them a space to learn how to respect the natural world and care for it properly,” said Ben, who led the project.

He said youngsters would soon learn to love their greens by tending to their own crops.

Pupils and staff prepare the garden and vegetable patch. Picture: Manor Junior School - Credit: Manor Junior School

Parents, sixth form students from nearby Barking Abbey and a team of landscapers from Father Nature, based in Brixton, all helped prepare the garden.

“None of this would have been possible without the generous financial support from London City Airport and Tesco Groundworks,” Ben added.