Graduates Re-Design Garden At Kingsway Community Primary School

Jaguar and Land Rover graduates have re-designed the garden of Kingsway Community Primary School in Leamington Spa, helping the school celebrate its 50th anniversary in style.

Ten first year graduates increased the grass area of the school's quadrangle, removing paving slabs to help plant growth and creating a thoroughfare in the process. The changes were designed to establish a greener more inviting space for children and staff to relax, while developing the pupil's appreciation of the environment. The students considered demonstrating the results to future generations important, so they stored a plastic time capsule underground containing a national newspaper, a group picture, Jaguar and Land Rover brand magazines and a list of their achievements.

The initiative, part of the graduate scheme 'Ignition', saw 10 employees contact several local primary schools in the area before deciding on Kingsway. The graduate community projects are designed to generate leadership, project management and team building skills to strengthen employee's abilities both and in out of the work place.

Sourcing materials from a plethora of local suppliers helped develop the graduates’ project management skills, whilst involving businesses in the Warwickshire region enhanced the community led aim of the project. Securing discounts and free materials from suppliers as varied as HSS Hire Centre in Leamington Spa and builder's merchants Travis Perkins, tested graduates’ negotiation skills at work.

Craig Hargreaves, Jaguar and Land Rover Graduate Trainee said: "Creating a greener garden for the school and working with local suppliers to obtain materials was really satisfying as we brought a smile to pupils’ faces while developing our project management skills."