School for children with motor impairments given eco award

Scotland’s national school for children with motor impairments has won a top eco award.

Staff and pupils at the Craighalbert Centre have been working together to boost their green credentials over the past few months.

As well as litter picking, they’ve been taking part in a range of eco-friendly activities.

Their hard work has now been rewarded with a prestigious Eco-Schools green flag, given to schools whose students have led the way to help make Scotland a more sustainable country.

Sensory garden: The centre has been given an Eco-Schools flag. NHS

Bob Fraser, the centre’s chief executive, said: “We’ll be flying the flag as a proud Eco-School from April 1st. The flag will be raised as the finale of our annual Easter bonnet parade.

“It is a fantastic tribute to the work of our children at Craighalbert, supported by our staff and working in partnership with parents and families.

“Becoming an Eco-School was our latest challenge but the kids here are well used to overcoming challenges.

“They don’t let anything stand in their way and we are very proud of all of them.”

The Craighalbert Centre, based in Cumbernauld in North Lanarkshire, is the Scottish Centre for Children with Motor Impairments (SCCMI).

It provides integrated learning, therapy and care to help children affected by motor impairments to achieve their potential and fulfil their ambitions.

Garden trail: The centre is based in Cumbernauld. NHS

Mr Fraser added: “We recently installed new learning and sensory gardens to provide outdoor learning opportunities. The kids love them but they also understand that all of us need to treat Scotland’s natural resources with the respect they deserve.

“We are proud of the award and to have achieved this during a pandemic, with our centre remaining open throughout, enabling our children to keep learning and work towards this award.

“We would like to give a special thanks to our eco champion, Maryanne, who has driven this project.”