PUPILS heading back to the classroom after the long summer holidays can look forward to a new outdoor learning and play area.
The playground at Burman Infant School in Shirley has been given a revamp with new fencing and gates and a refresh of the storage shed thanks to Selco’s Support Centre in Wythall.
The company, which has five stores in Birmingham – in Stirchley, Solihull, Perry Barr, Tyburn and Tyseley – provided all the materials and paint used on the project.
Ella Saxty, headteacher at the Velsheda Road school, said: “I would like to send a huge and heartfelt thanks to Selco as a whole and the team that volunteered to carry out the work in particular.
“We were hopeful that they would paint one fence in the time they had but the team ended up doing so much more.
“We don’t have any money to carry out anything but absolutely essential repair work so we would normally have to hold a fundraising event and then carry out a bit of work and repeat the process many times to get things done.
“It has made a huge difference to the outdoor area used by our nursery and reception children, not only visually but also in inspiring the children who are approaching their learning in a different way because of the more vibrant look we now have.”
The attendance of the team came after Selco introduced a new scheme offering all of its near 3,000-strong workforce the chance to volunteer to support a local community project on a working day.
Gary Walker, one of the seven-strong category management team who carried out the work, said: “It was a fantastic day and something we were very proud to be involved with.
“The outdoor area needed some repair work and we got stuck in as a team and made the repairs and carried out the painting.
“The school were thrilled to have our support and made us feel very welcome, providing us with regular refreshments on what was an extremely warm day.
“We hope they are happy with the final outcome and the children get many more years of benefit from their outdoor play and learning.”
