Building a school rain garden with the Aquifer partnership
December 2021
Aimee Felus
TAP Programme Delivery Manager
What’s the challenge?
Children don’t often get the chance to create a garden where they can learn about managing water more sustainably - and be part of the team making it come to life.
What’s being done about it?
We’ve been supporting Moulsecoomb Primary school in Brighton to build a rain garden, led by The Aquifer Partnership. As well as being an attractive spot for wildlife, the garden demonstrates the different ways we can harness water in the built environment, where we’ve adapted the school playground to manage water more sustainably, collecting and filtering rainwater which otherwise may just flow away into drains. The project, which involved pupils in design, planting and artwork, is the first school raingarden in Brighton - and also houses chickens!
What are the benefits for our customers?
The partnership work closely with our Catchment First team to help the public understand the value of our underground water sources. The rain garden has given pupils outdoor learning opportunities to look at our relationship with water and how we can care for the environment together.
The Aquifer Partnership is delighted to have completed Brighton’s first school rain garden, thanks to support from Southern Water and others. It has been a joy to see the garden take shape and to engage the children in fun sessions learning how we can embrace the rain and use it to enhance a space and benefit plants and wildlife.