Year three pupils at Brampton Primary School helped to plant over 600 wildflower plugs as part of an initiative to restore valuable sites for bees and other pollinators.

The school was invited to join in with Full Fibre broadband provider Fibrus’ ongoing partnership with Cumbria Wildlife Trust with a community planting day at nearby Irthing Park.

Such environmental initiatives are not only important for local biodiversity, but can also provide a hands-on learning experience for pupils.

Through the wildflower planting day, the children were able to learn about nature in their own community. The children gain a deeper understanding of ecological systems and the significance of preserving our environment.

Anna Brooks, Brampton Primary school teacher, said: “The children have had a wonderful time planting within the community and it fits in perfectly with our plants topic later on in the year. In year two, they learned about seasoned bulbs and what is needed for germination, so it was great to be able to apply that knowledge with a hands-on learning experience.

“At the school we have ‘Eco warriors’, in other words, they are our student councillors, who have weekly meetings to discuss sustainability and the environment. They are working with Miss Moss to create wildflower gardens at the school, so it was great for them to be able to learn more about what is involved.”

The children worked in small groups to plant the wildflowers, while our members of staff taught them all about the positive impact that the wildflowers would have on the area.

Pupil Ziza Ridley, said: “I enjoyed putting the plug plants into the ground with my friend Julia so that the insects will enjoy the wildflowers.”

Brampton Green and Wild, a local wildlife gardening group, who are dedicated to creating spaces that encourage biodiversity and provide essential habitats, also attended to help plant the wildflowers and initially approached Cumberland Council about establishing wildflower habitat at the park.

Volunteer Lisa Bennington said: “I think we’ve lost the ability to have areas like this for children to come and experience. This initiative will allow children to do bug hunts, look at the flowers and learn about the environment, all while encouraging pollinators.

“We’d love for people in Brampton to see the benefits of this project, in helping children learn  and for creating habitats for the bugs and insects.”

With a £150,000 contribution as part of one of their environmental initiatives in the county, Fibrus is aiming to help us to create or restore 15 valuable sites for pollinators during the three year project. We're running the community planting days, as well as pollinator identification and training sessions, as part of the initiative.

Charlotte Rankin, Pollinator Conservation Officer at Cumbria Wildlife Trust, said: “We’ve had over one thousand wildflowers to plant today and we’ve sped through them thanks to so many volunteers joining us today, it’s been brilliant. We've lost over 97 per cent of our wildflower meadows, so every patch of habitat that we can bring back into our green space really makes a difference for pollinators.

“Getting the children involved in the actual restoration activities, like the seed sowing and the planting, is a lovely opportunity for them to learn and contribute directly to conserving pollinators.”

Neil Northman, member of the Hyperfast GB Stakeholder team at Fibrus also attended the event to help plant the flowers.

He said: “It was incredible to see the Brampton community come together in support of this environmental initiative. We’re delighted to see the partnership with Cumbria Wildlife Trust and Fibrus really come to life through the planting days and is a true reflection of our commitment to environmental sustainability.”

Plans to create wildflower habitat were shaped by Brampton Green & Wild, Cumberland Council and Cumbria Wildlife Trust. Cumberland Council’s Open Spaces Team will maintain the areas as part of their Conservation Grasslands initiative to help the wildflower areas to flourish.

There will also be opportunity for the community to get involved with raking off cuttings, and Brampton Green & Wild hope to organise wildflower and pollinator surveys to help monitor the areas.