A Bromley construction company has been working with students from a special educational needs school to build a sensory garden in the main playground.

Nicholas James Construction held a workshop at Riverston School in Lewisham to allow the students to have a go at contributing to the development of the garden.

The sensory garden was made with the hope of becoming a community space to support the staff and student’s mental health and well-being.

The school specialises in teaching students with autism from the age of 11 to 21.

Nicholas James Construction set up three different areas where pupils could help build flower walls, a canopy and even bricklaying.

The company’s main bricklayer nicknamed ‘Badger’ was on hand to help students master the art.

Students from Year 11-14 grabbed their own high-visibility jacket and hard hat to take part in the different sessions.

Brendan Daley, company director of Nicholas James Construction said that he has seen the importance of encouraging young individuals to thrive on the skills that they have and to provide the opportunity to take part in more vocational pathways.

Many of the students felt that they had achieved a major accomplishment throughout the day, making comments such as “I would love to be able to do this in the future” and “see even girls are good at construction.”

Riverston School declared the sensory garden as fully open on June 22, 2022 following the workshops that were held in March.

Nicholas James Construction plans to host more workshops in the future.

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