Monksdown Primary and Myerscough College bring creativity to the Palm House

As part of its 25-year anniversary celebrations, the Palm House in Sefton Park is hosting its very first Show Gardens on its East Lawn.

Displayed between 10 and 21 June, the gardens have been developed by local charities, schools and community groups. Each have created plots of 2 x 3 metres, spanning education, health and wellbeing, environmental action and community growing.

Monksdown Primary School in Liverpool and Myerscough College in Preston are amongst the 10 groups involved in developing the gardens. Each groups creation not only represents the values of their individual organisation, but also messages of hope, collaboration, remembrance, joy, recovery and resilience, in honour of the Palm House’s mission to root for People, Plants and Place.

Monksdown Primary school pupils put together an incredible Wizard of Oz-themed garden to celebrate kindness, courage and community. A Year 5 pupil at the school said:

“Working on the garden has made me feel really proud because everyone has helped each other and shared ideas. I liked painting the yellow pebbles with kind words because it will make visitors smile. It has shown me that when we work together, we can create something amazing for our community.”

Year 5 teacher, Mrs Ferrigan, added:

“This project has given our children the opportunity to be creative, work collaboratively and feel proud of their community. Watching them share ideas, support one another and bring the Wizard of Oz theme to life has been incredibly special. The garden reflects the kindness, resilience and imagination that our children show every day.”

Assistant principal at Myerscough College, Dr Helen Eaton, commented:

Being part of the 130th Anniversary Celebration of Sefton Park Palm House is wonderful for the students and staff from Myerscough College. It is important for us to understand and appreciate our local horticultural heritage as we train the employees and volunteers of the future.”

The other groups representing the show gardens are:

• Let’s Talk CIC
• Bentinck Street Community Garden
• Growing Sudley
• The Friends of Sefton Park
• Alfie’s Squad
• Home education Science & Nature Club; ‘The Friendship Journey’
• Woodlands Hospice
• Petrus

Kate Martinez, head of Visitors and Communities at Sefton Park Palm House, said:

“The impact of nature on health and wellbeing is so key to what we do, that we wanted to give people the chance to experience designing and building their own gardens, while also providing a platform to showcase the important work that they do.

“The Palm House began as an ‘indoor garden’ for its Victorian visitors, but since reopening 25 years ago, the building has become so much more. We’re proud to be known as a beautiful wedding venue, but our purpose as a health and wellbeing resource and a haven for our local community is just as important to us.

“The Show Gardens are a tangible way of representing and celebrating this and the incredible work of all the community groups that we’ve been lucky to work with over the years. As well as children and young adults from local educational settings, it’s also been very special to work with organisations such as Let’s Talk CIC, Growing Sudley and Alfie’s Squad among others, who do such valuable work in our local community that has a real impact on people’s lives.”

The Show Gardens are open every day except Saturdays, from Wednesday 10 June at 1pm until Sunday 21 June.

They make up part of a wider series of events happening throughout the year to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Palm House reopening, and the original year it opened 130 years ago in 1896 as the centrepiece of Sefton Park. Events include a display at Liverpool’s Central Library, a programme of talks, late summer openings, and a Grow Your Own Harvest Festival.