Growing Something for the Future

Sometimes the best learning opportunities arrive right on our doorstep.

When the Lake District National Park Authority, working with Bootle Parish Council and local landowners, created a new footpath through the countryside at Bootle, our children were invited to become part of its story.

The new route connects the Wellbank development with Bootle railway station, creating a valuable walking link through our local landscape.

But completing the path was only the beginning.

1,500 Trees – and Lots of Little Helpers!

Children from across Captain Shaw's – from our two-year-olds to our Year 6 pupils – joined Lake District National Park Rangers to help improve the new route.

Together, they helped plant more than 1,500 trees into the existing hedgerow.

Hawthorn, hazel, blackthorn, rowan, rose, crab apple and bird cherry will gradually establish themselves along the route, creating food and habitats for wildlife, supporting biodiversity and forming a natural boundary and windbreak.

Our children weren't simply hearing about caring for the environment.

They were doing it.

Learning Beyond the Classroom

Opportunities like this are an important part of our curriculum.

Working alongside National Park Rangers allowed children to encounter people who actively care for and manage the landscape around them. They could connect their learning about plants, habitats, biodiversity, sustainability and their local environment with something happening in the real world.

Children also experienced something that cannot easily be recreated in a classroom: working together across different ages on a genuine conservation project and seeing the immediate result of their efforts.

Our National Park – Our Responsibility

We are incredibly fortunate to live and learn within the Lake District National Park.

We want our children not only to enjoy this extraordinary landscape, but to understand that looking after it is a shared responsibility.

Planting the hedgerow gave children an opportunity to Be Respectful, Be a Good Friend, Show Courage, Show Wisdom and Persevere – putting our school values into action through service to their community and environment.

It also helped children understand that caring for a place sometimes means doing something today whose greatest benefits will be experienced by somebody else in the future.

Serving the Common Good

The trees our children planted will take years to mature.

As the children grow, the hedgerow will grow with them – providing habitats for wildlife, strengthening the landscape and improving a path that will be used by residents and visitors for many years to come.

One day, former Captain Shaw's pupils may walk along this route and be able to say:

“I helped plant that.”

That is Serving the Common Good in action – contributing something today that will benefit people, wildlife and our community tomorrow.

Read the Full Story

The Lake District National Park Authority also featured our children's contribution to the project.

Read: