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A school landscape award scheme
"Well designed school grounds can really help children’s learning and development. Grounds for Optimism is an exciting proposal that encourages schools to think about design in a practical way. I wish this innovative proposal every success, and look forward to seeing the winning schemes."
Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MP
Minister of State DCMS
‘The School Grounds are a rich multi-faceted learning resource on the doorstep. They offer excellent opportunities for both formal and informal learning and play.’
DCSF, Manifesto for Learning Outside the Classroom, November 2006
Introduction
Schools throughout the UK are facing many exciting challenges and upheavals, in particular the Building Schools for the Future Programme. Clearly a large focus of this and other activities is about the provision of stimulating, modern and flexible school buildings. Through this initiative we also wish to raise the profile of the need for equally exciting and versatile school grounds.
It is a sad and regrettably common experience that as schools expand and building work takes place the school landscape is often the area least well resourced and most likely to suffer - particularly from budget cuts. Many head teachers, when asked, would love to invest in their school grounds to unify their sites, provide improved student areas for recreation and to make their school immediately far more welcoming to the local community. Their school grounds also offer fantastic learning opportunities, enhancing a wide range of curriculum areas.
This award scheme aims to encourage schools to assess their grounds, prioritise their needs and empower youngsters and teachers in the decision and design making processes. Clearly, only a limited number of the submissions will gain the funding through this process to realise their designs, but all those who take part will be equipped with the tools and ideas to make proposals to their local education authorities and other funding organisations as to how they want their school grounds to develop in the future.
The President of the Landscape Institute, Nigel Thorne, has set as a key aim of his tenure to strengthen links with schools and foster the development of environmental design skills, to help address the serious national shortage of landscape architects.
“No school wanting to make the most of their school grounds should be without the critical professional support of a landscape architect. When landscape architects get involved with pupils, staff and parents they can really inspire school communities to get the best out of their environment and make a real contribution to the quality of life for themselves and their neighbourhood. ”
Nigel Thorne,
President, Landscape Institute
This award scheme provides tremendous scope to connect various organisations and professionals to develop joint activity. Importantly, it also provides an opportunity to link together many of the diverse, but often closely related initiatives and programmes already underway or currently being developed.
Crucially, it is not designed as yet another pilot programme. It aims to join up intiatives and organisations in such a way that they deliver a clear programme of activity from the bottom up. It aims to work directly with youngsters as the future citizens and decision makers and for them to be the catalyst.
Project development funded by the South East England Development Agency