A HARTLEPOOL care home has opened its doors to pupils with social, emotional and mental health difficulties as part of a garden rejuvenation project.

The Catcote Academy school pupils will pick up spades, trowels and brushes as they breathe new life into the outside areas of Queens Meadow Care Home, on Stockton Road.

The work will involve painting and installing a seaside mural and landscaping the front garden of the home.

MKM Building Supplies has dug deep and donated £500-worth of products to help kick-start the work.

The pupils are now appealing for further donations of bedding plants, flowers, garden equipment, paint, soil and wood.

Ethan Keanen and Jordan Rowntree, Year 7 and 8 pupils at the academy, have written to local businesses with their appeal.

They said: “We chose to volunteer there so the elderly people have a nice environment to sit and enjoy. We also plan to create a mural of areas of Hartlepool so they can remember their childhood memories.”

Catcote Academy is a secondary, co-education special school for pupils with learning difficulties, including autism, sensory and physical impairments, language and communication troubles.

The Queens Meadow gardening project has been planned between Hill Care Group, which operates the care home, and the school’s RE and Citizenship teacher, Paul Sowerby.

He said: “The project is our annual submission to the Citizenship Foundation’s Giving Nation in which young people devise a way to make a positive contribution to society. We have been fortunate enough to win national recognition on two previous occasions.

“The pupils thought volunteering to help the elderly was a great idea and wanted to use up some of their energy through gardening. The mural was decided upon after a visit and seeing a great opportunity in a blank wall. In addition to this, the students are keen to work directly with the residents in social activities as well.”

He added: “The benefits to the pupils are enormous. The group leading the project all suffer from social, emotional and mental health difficulties, which often result in behavioural issues. Using the focus of a project with many successful outcomes such as this, addresses all of the difficulties they face.

“Hopefully, they can take the positivity from being a part of a team and use the experience to help them when they are not feeling so good about themselves.”

Liz Jones, Customer Relations Officer for the Hill Care Group, said: “We are extremely grateful to Catcote Academy and the pupils for offering to carry out this work for our residents.

“The residents can’t wait for the pupils to start work as they’re very excited about seeing the mural and the improvements to the garden.

“We recently officially re-opened the renovated gardens at the back of the home and the additional work carried out by the pupils will give us a first class space for the residents to enjoy this summer.”

Anyone interested in donating materials or tools for the project should contact Paul Sowerby by email on psowerby@hpoolcatcote.org.uk or by telephone on 01429 264036.