Manchester Airport supports local schools with outdoor learning projects
· Airport’s community engagement and construction teams support project to create forest school at Crossacres Primary Academy and sensory gardens at St Paul’s Catholic High School in Wythenshawe
· More than 60 airport colleagues volunteer their time for projects
· Outdoor spaces at both schools due for completion this month
Green-fingered staff at Manchester Airport have been volunteering their time to create sensory gardens at two Wythenshawe schools.
More than 60 airport colleagues have chipped in with around 320 hours of work over the last few months to support the projects at Crossacres Primary Academy and St Paul’s Catholic High School, both of which are under three miles from the airport site.
Staff from third-party partners of the airport were also involved, including Manchester City Council and MACE – which is leading on the £1.3bn transformation of Terminal 2.
The project at Crossacres Primary Academy has rejuvenated its forest school, which had become overgrown and difficult for children to access, with work worth over £12,000. Volunteers cleared excess vegetation and constructed 13 raised flowerbeds, repaired a wooden gazebo used as a classroom – including waterproofing it and adding guttering – installed a bench to the fire pit area, and repaved pathways.
The new Forest School, which is shared with Ashgate Special Support School, seeks to create a space for pupils to learn about natural habitats in their area, and how to protect them.
Meanwhile at St Paul’s Catholic High School, volunteers from the airport and its partners cut back overgrown vegetation, cleared raised beds and tidied up paths over the school summer holidays, with plans for installing new fencing and renovating outdoor spaces in the coming weeks. The refreshed space will give the school’s 950 pupils a dedicated outdoor learning space when completed.
"Manchester Airport is proud of the role it plays in supporting its surrounding communities and being a good neighbour is really important to us, so we were delighted to get such a fantastic response from colleagues and our partner organisations when we put out a call for volunteers to help with these projects.
“The airport has had a record-breaking year and is here to serve the whole of the north, but we’re especially keen that local communities share in our success, whether that’s through employment or through improvements to local amenities, and schemes like this are a fantastic way to give something back.”
Julie Walker – Community Engagement Manager, Manchester Airport
"We’re very grateful for the incredible work that the team of volunteers from Manchester Airport have done in transforming our school sensory garden back into a beautiful and usable space. Their dedication, hard work, and passion have truly made a significant difference.
“The new garden will provide our students with a serene and stimulating environment to enjoy, and we look forward to seeing the positive impact this will have on our school community.”
Ryan Coughlan – School Business Manager, Saint Paul's Catholic High School
The Sensory Garden project is the latest in a string of schemes that the airport’s Community Engagement team has worked on with local schools – including a competition to win £25,000 for a new eco-garden, to mark 25 years of the airport’s Community Trust Fund in 2022.
The airport’s Aerozone education centre opened in the same year and has since welcomed more than 6,000 pupils from across the North for school trips and educational events.