We were delighted to assist with mentoring students for a competition run by the Lincolnshire Agricultural Society, taking place at this year’s Lincolnshire Show.
With advice and guidance from our team members, a group of students have created a quirky and sustainable way of encouraging healthy eating. They also rejuvenated an area of land on the school grounds, turning it into a wellbeing garden to promote mindfulness and happiness.
The competition inspires young people to learn more about food, farming, their local community, the environment, and sustainability.
Each year local schools are given the chance to compete for the title of ‘School Challenge Champion’. Students had the opportunity to choose one (or more) of ten exciting challenges to take part in, alongside peers from across the county.
With our help, University Academy Holbeach (UAH) decided to take on two of the challenges, including the ‘Lincolnshire Roots’ challenge. This consisted of students developing a range of products from fresh produce as part of a new brand.
For the challenge, UAH students grew some of their own root vegetables to go to market, and developed sustainable packaging for their produce. The packaging had to be environmentally friendly, whilst still remaining functional and standing out against competitors.
Students came up with the fantastic idea of ‘junior veg boxes’ themed around different named characters such as ‘Ollie the Onion’, in order to encourage younger children to learn more about organic produce.
The children would select a character box and fill it with different vegetables whilst shopping at the supermarket. They could then re-use the box by taking it back each time and re-filling it with more sustainable, environmentally-friendly produce. Once the box becomes unusable, it can simply be recycled at home.
Our team mentored the students through regular video calls to give them advice on the digital elements of the competition, such as PowerPoint presentations, to make their school stand out from the crowd.
Students also worked on a wellbeing garden as part of the competition - this time contributing towards the ‘My Community, My Commitment’ challenge. This was led by Sam Graper, Head of Performing Arts.
The aim of this project was to create a safe outdoor space to ease school-related stress and anxiety. It is the perfect place for students to go if they need to feel calm, or talk to like-minded people.
As a result of taking part, the children were able to greatly develop their confidence and teamwork skills.
David Scoffield, a music teacher from the school who has been supervising the students, said “We have had some great help from Duncan & Toplis. It has been absolutely fantastic, and great to work with you guys. We’re already planning on what to do next year!”.
It was the first time our team have mentored a school challenger, and was greatly enjoyed by all. We are pleased we were able to help future generations learn about sustainability and develop their confidence as part of this project.
Please click here to read about our partnership with the social mobility initiative, Rise, which reinforces our commitment to developing talent of the future.
