The new mayor of Abergavenny has opened a £10,000 wildlife pond at Llantilio Pertholey Primary School after vandals had destroyed their first two ponds.
Councillor Martin Hickman and the mayoress Alison Hickman cut the red ribbon at the new pond, watched by members of Abergavenny Rotary Club, the school Parent/Teacher Association, members of staff, pupils and parents.
A large chunk of the money for the pond came from the Rotary Club after members of the school eco-committee wrote to ask if they could help to fund the project. The PTA started the ball rolling by providing £3,000 for a sturdy seven-foot high security fence. The Rotarians, led by Clive Howells, chairman of the community and vocational committee match-funded the children’s £500 for the annual Swimathon and then chipped in another £3,000, including a grant of £1,000 from district Rotary.
The school’s eco co-ordinator, Year 6 teacher Tracey Pugh, raised more money with a sleepover and the rest came from the school funds. She said: “We had our two previous ponds destroyed by vandals so we had to erect the security fence first. We are very grateful to the PTA for paying for this work to be done and to the Rotary Club for their generosity. The children were so enthusiastic about the whole project and helped with planting. Six members of the school eco committee went with myself and Mr Howells to Raglan Garden Centre to choose 18 fish and six snails to stock the pond.”
Mrs Pugh praised the contractor Charlie Cryer for carrying out the work during the terrible weather last November. It took him and his men three weeks to complete and the work included felling a couple of trees to provide more light for the pond.
Head teacher David Evans praised the PTA, Rotary Club and the contractor for their part in the project and said the pupils had been very enthusiastic about the scheme. He said the pond would be a real asset for the children to learn about wildlife.
