The BDN attended a morning tea at SCAC on Tuesday where South East Local Land Services (LLS) was thanked for a grant to the school’s Education Support Centre.

SCAC Year 9 student Larissa Horswell wrote this special report for the occasion:

YOU can fix all the world’s problems in a vegie patch.

The Sapphire Coast Anglican College Education Support Centre was thrilled to be granted the Coles Junior Land Care Garden Grant of $1100.

The students have formed the Diggers’ Patch and are making big changes to their much-loved vegie and chook patch.

“The patch will become not only a sanctuary for the children, but the heart of the Special Ed Department,” head of education support Richard Arbon said.

“The children will be able to utilise the space for gardening, socialising, language, mathematics, [and] science along with the growing of fresh produce to be cooked in our life skills class.”   

The students are extending the chicken pen to a bigger and more comfortable residence for the chickens and they are also getting the chickens some more friends.

They are extending the vegie garden and have been busy coming up with designs and working out the most suitable vegetables and fruit trees and their placement.

“Our long-term goal is to encourage our children to grow into healthy, independent people,” Mr Arbon said.

A duck pen will be added under fruit trees and some of the poultry will be raised from eggs, then, once grown, cooked and eaten by the students from the support centre. 

South East LLS Landcare and landholder support officer David Newell said for a relatively small amount of money, it had been extended into a large project. 

“Every school needs something like this,” he said. 

Special Education teacher Sharon Alexander said the garden is used as a place for sensory breaks, so it was a good place for the students to de-stress. 

“It’s a time-out place too,” teachers aid Lisa Milton said.

“If you’re having problems, it’s nice to go down and fiddle in your own garden.

“Even just a 15-minute break means they can go back into the classroom refreshed.” 

Year 7 student Riley Triggell-Williams uses the garden every Thursday, and his favourite part of it is “mainly digging and getting my hands dirty”.