Creating a buzz with bee hotels at Woodgate

Schoolchildren from Woodgate Primary School enjoyed a hive of activity at the end of term building bee hotels.

Otters Class created a buzz earlier this week at Woodgate development’s wildflower meadow maze located on the village green. Each child built their own bee hotel to mark the grand finale on site of our pioneering educational programme, to promote sustainability and to encourage children to enjoy nature and understand more about local ecology.

Louise Highton, teacher of the Otters Class at Woodgate Primary School, said: “It was a really lovely way to finish off the Summer term, and all the children thoroughly enjoyed the activity. The Eddie & Ellie educational programme has been incredibly beneficial in teaching the children about sustainability and the environment.”

The schoolchildren were joined by Sarah Crush, Social Value Manager from Thakeham, who said: “Our ultimate goal at Thakeham is to create thriving communities – from the careful design of our developments, with all-important green space and wider facilities for residents to enjoy, to inspiring the next generation.

“Our educational programme allows us to get involved with local schools in the area we build homes and teach pupils about the importance of nature and wildlife in a fun, yet informative way. It’s been a huge success and we’re thrilled to have completed our second programme with the wonderful children at Woodgate Primary School.”

The award-winning Eddie & Ellie programme is a cross-curriculum school course for Lower Key Stage 2 pupils. The programme uses a children’s book ‘Eddie & Ellie’s Wild Adventures’ as a springboard to learn about nature, ecology and the full life cycle of a newbuild development from planning to site completion.

Fully funded, created and designed by us alongside educational experts, the programme includes a host of support materials, creative workshops, engaging activities, on site visits and a Wildlife Trust school trip. Highlights include a water cycle workshop, poster making, seed planting, storyboarding and drama activities as well as a site visit to one of our newbuild development to support early careers learning and understand the importance of bat boxes, swift bricks and hedgehog highways.

Launched in 2021, we have partnered with 14 schools to date and supported over 500  children. Find out more about Eddie & Ellie.