On the first day back after the half-term holiday, Danes Hill School held a Spring Bulb Planting event for the school community. This special event saw 10,000 bulbs planted in the school’s grounds, which were generously donated by Garsons Farm and J Parker’s Plants and Bulbs.
Members of the school community made their way to the sports fields to plant the donated bulbs in swathes across the pitch banks. Pupils were guided by the school’s Grounds team and the banks soon became a sea of newly planted bulbs. Once Spring has arrived, the field will be filled with a joyful, colourful display in memory of Lettie and Emma Pattison. We opened our gates to parents and grandparents and welcomed members of Lettie’s family, Rev Canon Andrew Haviland, Senior Chaplain at Epsom College and Mrs Sarah Raja, Head of Rowan Prep School.
We are incredibly grateful to J.Parker’s and Garsons Farm for their kind donations of bulbs, which included a mixture of daffodils, tulips, crocus and bluebells. J Parker’s is a family-run business based in Manchester. They collaborate with charities and local companies and in the past have supported the work of Garden Needs, Mid Chesire Beekeepers and Manchester Mind. Garsons is also a family-run business with whom Danes Hill has enjoyed a long-standing relationship. The Nursery children visit the farm each Autumn for their Pumpkin Picking trip and pupils have also visited the Pick-Your-Own farm on the Esher Common Charity Walk. Garsons are proud to be part of the local community, and actively support the community surrounding both their Surrey and Hampshire stores. They endeavour to help schools, charities, clubs and other organisations, and fundraisers through sponsorship, donations, events and advice.
We look forward to the blooming of the spring flowers, a special tribute for Lettie and Emma. Following their tragic deaths, we were supported by Winston’s Wish. Their work with schools and bereaved families has powerful and tangible impacts and they are there for long-term support. In October, Head Maxine Shaw ran the Royal Parks Half Marathon alongside Sarah Raja, Matthew Bryan, Paul Scully and Gail Greenwood, raising in excess of £25,000 for the charity.
Maxine Shaw said ‘The creation of a beautiful display of Spring life which will hopefully naturalise and grow with time was a tremendous representation of love and support for Lettie, Emma and their family. We cannot thank J Parker’s and Garsons Farm enough for their generous donation of bulbs and Winston’s Wish for their support through the dark days. They are gone from our lives but not from our hearts’.
