The winner of the Love Plants Community Garden Competition has received their prize!

Love Plants at Salop Leisure partnered with Shrewsbury Food Festival to run a competition for a local community space to win £750 worth of new plants and trees.

St Thomas and St Anne's CE Primary School in Hanwood were the deserving winners and have now received their prize.

They were one of three finalists who had their garden design displayed at the festival, where visitors voted for their favourite design.

Ed Glover​​​​, Marketing Manager at Salop Leisure, said: “It is a privilege to help St Thomas and St Anne's transform their grounds, creating a special place which their whole community can enjoy. We can’t wait to see the new garden take shape.”

The school plans to create an outdoor area that can be enjoyed by the whole community, including the school children, residents of the local care home, and youth groups. 

Hannah McGrath, Headteacher at St Thomas and St Anne’s CE Primary School said: “We are absolutely delighted to have won this fantastic prize from Love Plants. As a small school, it means so much to us and will have a tremendous impact on our outdoor spaces. We are looking forward to using the plants to enhance the play opportunities for all our children.

“We are hoping to use the plants to create sensory spaces, tunnels, areas for den-making, and small social spaces. Our aim is to design interesting routes for the children to explore, adding richness to how they play and interact with our outdoor environment. This prize will significantly contribute to the enjoyment and diverse opportunities our children will have for outdoor activities.

“Now we have returned to school, we plan to involve pupils in the planting process, adapting and responding to their ideas as we go. We want to express our heartfelt thanks to Love Plants, Shropshire Festivals, and everyone who voted for us, your support will help us create an even more inspiring outdoor learning environment for our pupils."

Beth Heath, Director of Fun at Shropshire Festivals, added, “Thank you to Love Plants for their generosity in making this competition possible and creating a legacy in a local school. We can’t wait to see the garden at St Thomas and St Anne’s Primary School grow and prosper, and we hope to see it in full bloom in years to come!”