Banchory Academy win Certificate of Recognition in Pocket Garden Competition

Banchory Academy won the Wildlife gardening theme

Winners of a design competition earlier this year were invited to turn their design into reality, and to showcase their completed garden.

Children of all ages, from nursery to high school were tasked with reflecting the 2023 themes of Celebration, One Planet Picnic and Wildlife Gardening, having to use their creativity to create sustainable and eye-catching gardens.

Banchory Academy’s ‘Celebrating John Muir’s Legacy’ includes quotes from the environmentalist, a willow mountain and repurposes and reuses waste such as a milk bottle and pipe for a waterfall.

It also includes vegetables, a bug hotel and hedgehog house.

The other themed winners were St Andrew's Primary, Midlothian for the gardening for food theme and Appletree Nursery for the celebration theme.

The online Pocket Garden showcase was launched in 2021, with 38 garden design winners displayed in its first year.

This year, 43 schools were chosen to be entered into the online showcase and 8,514 votes were cast by the public to choose the public’s favourite winning design.

Newmains Primary from Renfrewshire won first place, receiving 1,066 votes and 12.53 per cent of the online vote.

Firpark Primary School from North Lanarkshire came in second with their celebration of the NHS receiving 841 votes and Flowerbank Early Childhood Centre’s 'Child who could be King, posh picnic' in East Ayrshire took third place with 539 votes.

Anthony McClusky, Project Officer at Butterfly Conservation and Pocket Garden Design Contest 2023 judge, said: “It has been fantastic to see the creativity that young people brought to their Pocket Gardens this year.

"This year’s themes of Celebration, One Planet Picnic and Wildlife gardening ties into the work we do at Butterfly Conservation, so I was thrilled to see how many of the entries created a space for wildlife to flourish.

"The Pocket Garden Design Contest allows young people to think outside the box while being creative in a fun, sustainable way. Congratulations to all the contestants that took part this year- you have a lot to celebrate about!”

Eve Keepax, Senior Education and Learning Officer for Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: “I would like to congratulate Banchory Academy on their pocket garden celebrating John Muir’s legacy.

"This year’s designs were inspired by the themes of Celebration, One Planet Picnic and Wildlife Gardening and the entries we received were filled with fun, excitement and celebration.”

She added: "We are thrilled that so many schools and young people took part this year and had fun learning about how they can help wildlife, grow something to eat and be creative, all in sustainable ways.”

The Pocket Garden Design Competition aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Four, Learning for Sustainability and is run by Keep Scotland Beautiful as part of its Climate Action Schools framework.

It gives pupils and educators a creative focus for Learning for Sustainability, STEM skills, and the Curriculum for Excellence.