School wildflower meadow is helping to protect bees

School children have been busy little bees while working to create a wildflower meadow in their playground.

Pupils at West Kilbride Primary have rolled their sleeves up and mucked in to support the Ayrshire Nectar Network.

The network is a project that is being spearheaded by the Scottish Wildlife Trust, with backing from partners including North and South Ayrshire councils.

North Ayrshire Council has contributed £100,000 to the network through the Scottish Government’s Nature Restoration Fund (NRF), which helps local authorities fund projects that help tackle the nature emergency we are currently experiencing.

As part of the network, various projects are already up and running in North Ayrshire.

These include the North Ayrshire Native Plant Nursery at Eglinton Country Park, Kilwinning, which is growing trees and plants native to the area.

The number of pollinators – including bees - around the world is in severe decline and they need human help to survive.

And the network is also seeing the creation and connection of nectar and pollen-rich habitats across North and South Ayrshire, with wildflower meadows and trees being planted to establish pollinator “highways”.

Land – from small pockets of grass to large swathes of fields – is being linked up to create a corridor of flowers that bees, butterflies, moths, bats and birds will benefit from.

This will ensure that they don’t go hungry and, in turn, help provide the food we eat and the flowers we see, while also boosting biodiversity. The nursery work ties into this by growing specific plants and wildflowers that have particular value to pollinators.

At the school, pupils and volunteers have been working hard to create a wildflower meadow within the grounds to provide shelter and food for important pollinators including bees, forming part of the larger pollinator highway.

Excited P3 and P4 children have been seeding wildflower seeds and planting bulbs for their meadow and they should see the results of their efforts in spring.

Headteacher Gemma Carson said:

“This is part of a larger piece of work in developing our outdoor learning programme, with enhanced opportunities for planting and growing being offered to pupils across the school in line with the Royal Horticultural Society School Gardening Awards programme.

“As part of this process, pupils recently grew and harvested their own vegetable produce to cook soup, with P7 buddies helping our P1 pupils to learn how to cut and grate.

“We have also been ambitious in our outdoor learning provision, with pupils learning fire and den building skills and enjoying time outdoors. Our P1 pupils recently enjoyed toasting marshmallows for an outdoor snack.”

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) became part of Scots Law earlier this year, highlighting that everyone has an ongoing responsibility to protect the rights of our children.

The council follows and respects the UNCRC to ensure that all children’s rights are respected

and that they are free to learn, play and develop.

Children are learning about these rights in school and Article 29 of the Convention highlights that they have the right to an education, which should develop their respect for the environment.

West Kilbride Primary’s Ayrshire Nectar Network project is a fine example of Article 29 being put into practice.