Garston school partners with the Palm House on community project

The Academy of St Nicholas has come together with the Palm House in Sefton Park to create bespoke bird tables for care homes around the city.

The Garston academy successfully applied to be part of the project when head of design and technology, Miss Katie Bell, saw the opportunity on X (formerly known as Twitter). She offered her expertise and skill set of her talented students, citing how working in the community is a key aspect of school life.

Thanks to funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, The Academy of St Nicholas will be able to produce 10 bird tables for 10 residential care homes in Liverpool, using the state-of-the-art workshops in school. The tables will be donated alongside a wooden gift box, which the academy has also offered to make for the project.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund helps support projects of all sizes that connect people and communities to the UK’s heritage.  

Kate Martinez, head of external relations at the Palm House, said: “The application submitted by Miss Bell from The Academy of St Nicholas was incredibly compelling. We selected the proposal to fulfil the brief as we loved the idea of local children being part of this funded project. 

“It is a wonderful chance to bring generations together.”

During a recent visit to the academy, Kate Martinez was able to see for herself how the bird tables will look after Year 9 student, Cody, showcased his own creations, highlighting his superb level of craftmanship. As a budding carpenter, Cody designs and builds bird tables in his spare time with his family. 

Kate added: “When we saw the quality of the bird table, we were overwhelmed. To say I am delighted that such a simple idea has grown and flourished, is an understatement.”

Miss Bell commented: “As soon as I saw the post on social media, I knew that as a school we would be able to fulfil the brief, and more! I am so pleased with how the project has developed and it is great that the art department is now involved.

“Our students are very excited to be designing and making the bird tables – they are really putting their all in and it is wonderful to see how dedicated they are.”

The 10 residential care homes and the academy will be invited to the Palm House on 6 March 2024, where students will present the care home residents with the gifts they have made. Two care homes confirmed to be invited are Waverley Care Home and Moss View Care Home.

Mr Gary Lloyd, headteacher of The Academy of St Nicholas, said: “As a school with strong Christian values, working within the local community is something that is very important to us and building these relationships ensures our students are always thinking about others.

“Our brilliant student leadership team have even invited residents of the care homes to our Christmas Party in December. As headteacher, I am incredibly proud of everyone involved.”