Withycombe Raleigh
C of E Primary School
Headteacher Mrs E Jones
School site developments - the latest updates are shown first.
A pause for thought in the quiet area.
These fabulous new boards with positive messages and sensory elements are now installed around the quiet area.
A perfect pause for thought at break times.
Planting our new Jubilee Hedge.
The youngest child from each class helped to plant the new jubilee hedge along the edge of the school field. Over 100 trees were planted to celebrate the Queen's Jubilee year. We look forward to watching them grow, supporting the environment and local wildlife.
Our exciting delivery!
Photos taken on day one of our new equipment installation, Tuesday 8th March 2022. The fence had to be removed temporarily to move the structures into the foundation garden. The children are safely out of the way - watching excitedly out of the window! They're going to love their play area upgrade!
It's now May and work continues - the playhouses are being installed, and practical artificial turf is now replacing the loose gravel around the Ark. It's all looking great!
New: photos added in June show the completed Foundation Garden complete with play houses - it looks amazing! The children have tested it out and they love it. Teachers will arrange for children from other Key Stage One classes to get the chance to play on the new equipment too.
Development plans for the school site, 2022.
We're very excited to let you know that we have some improvements planned for our outdoor spaces, which will start in the coming weeks.
We're creating a new ‘Tree Tops’ structure in the Foundation Garden, installed with a play surface that will enable children to access this outside space all year round. The construction is designed to develop children’s physical skills, as well as enhance cooperative and imaginative play. We know the children will love it! We're also adding some new timber playhouses, a storytelling chair, a performance stage and water channels for fun and practical play.
In addition to this we'll be updating The Ark - our outdoor classroom - by replacing the loose gravel with a much improved combination of a rubber surface and artificial turf. This will make the areas around the main timber construction more usable, and avoid the nuisance of loose stones which tend to find their way onto the main playground.
Thank you to our school business manager Mrs Pope for going above and beyond to make these plans a reality. She's had to overcome several hurdles in the process including applying for funding, dealing with planning applications, and importantly making sure there were no issues with tree conservation. We are part-funding these developments with some of our school sports grant. We're also very grateful to receive a grant from Exmouth and District Round Table for £10,450.
We're extremely fortunate to have fantastic outdoor spaces at our deceptively large school site, and these new developments will add to our excellent outdoor environment which also includes a sports field, two playgrounds, a well equipped nature school with fire pit, outdoor gyms, a mud kitchen, and a further performance area.
ALSO: we've appointed some grounds staff to sort out the planters around school. We have quite a few raised beds around our school site - outside of classrooms, by The Ark and by the playgrounds. By Spring they should be replanted and looking fabulous!