Team Oscrete lay ‘foundations for play’ in primary school grounds

Brother Michael and Keiron Todd, who are Oscrete’s concrete technicians, attended Lower Fields Primary School in Bradford from 2001-2011. This month they returned with colleagues to work on the school’s outdoor play space.

Six members of the Oscrete team, whose Rutland Road headquarters is half a mile away from the school, spent a day creating raised beds for the pupils’ home-grown vegetables, re-painting playground equipment and making benches in the outside story telling area.

Michael and Keiron help pupils raise vegetable beds (Image: Lorne Campbell/Guzelian)

Said Michael: “I’ve lived in this area all my life and it’s nice to be able to give back to the community and make it better for younger generations growing up. It was great to go back to our old primary school and see how the place has changed over the years and talk to pupils to give them an idea of how they progress from school life into a career.

“We both enjoyed refurbishing the outdoor areas with the Oscrete team, I think we did a really good job bringing some life back into these areas so the children can make the most of it. It was also nice to spend some time with my mum who works there as a teacher and for her to meet the people Keiron and I work with. It was a really positive day out, we all enjoyed doing something practical that helps to make a difference.”

Brothers Michael and Keiron Todd with Jill Taylor from the Participant Project and a pupil from the school (Image: Lorne Campbell/Guzelian)

One of the UK’s leading specialist construction chemical suppliers, Oscrete manufactures and supplies a range of concrete admixtures for pre-cast and ready-mix concrete and the ready-to-use mortar industries. The team’s activities at the school were co-ordinated by Participate Projects, which partners schools with businesses to enhance learning and life lessons.

Co-ordinator Jill Taylor said: “Our Venturists programme helps businesses to support young people through projects, challenges and visits. We help school pupils and students have the opportunity to create and deliver social action projects, so working with businesses like Oscrete helps them see the value in supporting our local communities.

“As well as working on repairs and making improvements to the play space, Michael and Keiron really led by example by volunteering their time to help the school. This left the children feeling inspired to take action and help their community too.”

Lower Fields Primary headteacher Rebecca Stansfield said that while the school’s outdoor area is a wonderful place where the children love to learn and explore, due to budget and expertise, the team struggles to maintain all the equipment. She added: “The hard work and skill set from the volunteers has enhanced several areas of school and we’re looking forward to using these areas more now. I hope we can work with Oscrete and Participate Projects again.”

Oscrete Director Scott Wilson added: “It’s important to our team to be a good neighbour and support our local community. Through The Venturists programme we’ve already offered our time to judge children’s social responsibility projects in a ‘Dragon’s Den’ style, but this is the first chance we’ve had to involve the wider team in an activity bringing immediate, tangible results. It was great to meet the pupils and we’re delighted to have made a difference to the school’s facilities.”