ENPS Sensory Gardening Project

This year, Essendon North Primary School is thrilled to have received a grant through the Woolworths Junior Landcare Grants program. As part of Woolworths' commitment to nurturing future environmental champions, our school is one of over 1,000 awarded funding to support projects that inspire children to spend time outdoors and connect with the natural environment.

We have allocated this funding to enhance an existing garden space, transforming it into a sensory garden. Designed with our students' wellbeing in mind, this garden offers a peaceful setting for nature connection, stress relief, and sensory exploration, encouraging relaxation and mindfulness. Gardening activities also provide opportunities for physical exercise, movement breaks that support emotional regulation, and a sense of ownership and self-esteem.

Our students have been working hard - cleaning the area, preparing soil beds, researching suitable plants, and planting them. The garden is nearly complete, and we invite everyone to come and enjoy the sensory experience it offers. We kindly ask our school community not to pick any flowers, as we aim to attract diverse wildlife to enrich our garden ecosystem and enhance future learning opportunities.

We look forward to sharing more updates about this exciting project!

Serena Walker

Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader