A team of our engineers have branched into volunteering at a primary school in Swanley to help them extend their forestry school.
Seven volunteers from our London Construction team visited High Firs Primary School last month as part of our Community Action Programme. It gives our 4,000 people a day of company time each year to volunteer and help an organisation or charity of their choice.
High Firs Primary School have been looking to extend their forestry school so that the children can go exploring on site and build dens to play in. The visit was arranged by Team Manager Andy Miles, whose wife works as a Teaching Assistant at the school, which will be attended later this month by the daughter of Stakeholder & Collaboration Project Manager Neil Baxter.
The team got stuck in from the moment they arrived, cutting away a large area for the children to play and learn in. A new path was created to other parts of the forest area using wood chippings, giving the children more places to explore.
For one member of the team, it wasn’t their first experience of this kind of work. Zachary Holton joined us as a Trainee NCO1 in January but previously ran his own tree surgery business so was able to kindly supply equipment such as a chipper to help remove branches. This saved time and enabled the volunteers to focus on other tasks. Contractor JDT Utilities also supplied a digger, wheelbarrows and shovels for the day.
The team joined the children at lunchtime for a delicious school roast dinner, sitting in small chairs and learning about how they use the forestry school.
Neil Baxter, Stakeholder & Collaboration Project Manager, said: “We had a great time at High Firs extending their forestry school and we were really proud of what we achieved in just one day. It was a great opportunity for some team building and I know the whole team are pleased we could make a difference for the children – I can’t wait to hear what my daughter gets up to when she joins!”
Andrew Kilbride, Headteacher at High Firs Primary School, said: “We were delighted to welcome the team of helpers from SGN, who volunteered their time for the day to develop our woodland area. They battled with brambles and thorns to significantly extend the area we can use – we owe them a huge thank you for their hard work!”
