On Saturday Mandeville hosted the first community gardening day with the aim of improving the school environment for our pupils and to get together as a local community to share everyone's expertise and knowledge. The day was a huge success, despite the 34 degrees heat, with many local residents, families and key figures from the Sopwell community attending and getting their hands dirty!

It was lovely to share the day with so many of our school families, Becky our local vicar, Emma Matanle and Sandy Walkington, our local and district Councillors, lots of Mandeville staff and the Mayor of St. Albans, Janet Smith. We would specially like to thank anyone who donated money, plants, pots, compost or seeds and both Ayletts and Burton Tyler garden centres, who donated many bedding plants, bags of compost and hanging baskets. Also extra special thanks to Sharon Linney for promoting our event far and wide, Grace Muriel residents and Siouxsie for coming along on the day, Jamie Morris for providing advice and guidance on what to plant where, all the amazing Mandeville staff for giving up their time at the weekend to support the event and the local company Garden on a Roll, who generously donated a 10 metre border, full of plants to brighten up the front of our school.

Mandeville's first community gardening day had such a lovely community spirit and it was so lovely to see the community connecting across generations.