Construction firm helps out in the nick of time for School capsules

When these time capsules are next seen, many of the children who watched them being buried in a Kenton school’s Secret Garden will have sons and daughters of their own.

The year will be 2033, the 2012 Olympics will be a distant memory and schoolchildren will be more likely to have heard of Gordon Brown through history lessons than on the news.

Children from Mountfield Primary School, Mountfield Playgroup, and Sure Start North Moor’s Children’s Centre as well as volunteers from the Wellford Centre chose press clippings, photographs and other artefacts to show children of the future what life was like in Kenton in 2008.

In a special ceremony, which also marked the opening of a Secret Garden, children watched as Catherine Fitt, executive director of children’s services for Newcastle City Council buried eight time capsules which were placed in a specially made wooden casket.

For the schools, it was the end of a race against time after they were struggling to make the time capsules just 48 hours before the ceremony was due to take place.

Unsure of where to turn, Helen Cleaver, head of Mountfield Playgroup, sought the advice of Miller Construction, which is currently working on extending nearby Sacred Heart School.

Miller Construction, which Helen had heard had buried time capsules for schools in the past, were able to help and after a short conversation with site manager Steven Liddle, a team of helpers from Miller were hard at work.

The Miller team assembled the selection of silver capsules (otherwise known as flasks) and created the custom-build wooden casket. Steven was then invited to join children and teachers to watch as the capsule was buried.

He said: “When Helen first spoke to us, we couldn’t wait to help out in what seemed like a bit of a race against the clock.

“Usually, we source specially designed time capsules but in this case, there simply wasn’t the time so we had to make our own.

“Although we had no real relationship with the school beforehand, after working at the Sacred Heart School we felt part of the local community and wanted to help out in whatever way we could. I’m just glad we got the job done in time.”

As well as burying the capsule, Ms Fitt opened a Secret Garden full of vegetables and plants, on a piece of previously overgrown land in the grounds of both the primary school and the children’s centre.

In the weeks, months and years to come, the garden will be shared by the school, playgroup and children’s centre, allowing families, children and staff to grow their own vegetables and learn about nature, but it will also provide a valuable space for outdoor play.

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Media Enquiries: Please contact Chris Marritt at Beattie Communications on 0161 932 1023 or email chris.marritt@beattiegroup.com

Notes to the editor:

Miller Construction is a subsidiary of The Miller Group, the UK’s largest, privately-owned housebuilding, property development, and construction business.