The Victorian School Gardens Awards held its presentation ceremony at Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens last week.
The weather gods smiled last week on the presentation of the Victorian Schools Gardens Awards at Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens, as rain cleared and the sun shined on the 350 students, parents and teachers in attendance.
Berwick Lodge Primary School, in pursuit of its ‘Learning for Life’ vision, secured the main Kevin Heinze Perpetual Award for its outdoor area. The school incorporates a variety of garden settings, including a community garden, sensory garden, Anzac memorial garden and soon-to-be-developed Outdoor Common Room, to contribute to an overall learning environment that heavily engages students and the broader school community.
Berwick Lodge was one of three state award winners and narrowly beat out Cornish College (located in Bangholme) and Swan Hill Specialist School for the main prize.
Cornish College has embedded sustainability its teaching and co-curricular activities for students, ranging in age from those in its Early Learning Centre to those working through their VCE.
At Swan Hill Specialist School, students take great pride in their gardens, play areas and facilities. Despite challenging weather conditions – especially over summer – students play a vital role in the planting, watering and maintenance of the school’s outdoor areas through a range of educational programs.
This year, 30 schools in total won awards for their garden programs and shared in $43,000 worth of vouchers and in-kind products.
Get Involved in 2019
The Victorian Schools Garden Awards encourage school communities to develop, grow and celebrate their gardening achievements. The awards foster a lifelong student connection with the natural environment and promote the value of outdoor spaces in progressive modern education. Established in 1977 by Paul Crowe OAM and the late Kevin Heinze, the program, now in its 41st year, is supported by the Victorian School Building Authority in partnership with Nursery and Garden Industry Victoria.
For more information on the start-of-year grants program and the end-of-year awards, and to get your school involved in 2019, see: Victorian Schools Garden Awards
Click here for 2018 VSGA Awards Results