On Saturday 23 March, boys, staff, and special guests gathered to officially open our new outdoor classroom, ‘The Welly.’ This remarkable, versatile space was made possible by the generous support of The Colonel Wells Fund* (through our Bedford School Foundation Trust), so we were delighted to be joined by four members of the Wells family for the opening, along with the Deputy Chair of the Foundation Trust, Mark Hall, who had the honour of cutting the ribbon, which fittingly for the setting was a flower garland.
We were also delighted to welcome four of our Trustees of the Bedford School Foundation Trust, including the Chairman, Roger Marks (71-82), and the project’s lead build manager, Tom Stephenson from Timotay (who also brought his dad along to check out their handiwork!).
Undoubtedly, the boys were the shining stars of the day, brimming with enthusiasm as they guided the assembled guests through the multifunctional space. They proudly explained the various resources, from exciting forest school activities to engaging nature explorations like bird watching and minibeast identification. The boys showcased the geodome, composting station, solar and wind turbines, water filtration system, indoor learning area and more, before tucking into nature-inspired cakes and hot chocolate.
In his speech, Headmaster Ian Silk thanked the many individuals involved in this hugely collaborative project. Special recognition went to Mrs Russell and Mark Hall, who conceived the idea and saw it through to fruition, the Foundation Trust for supporting the development, our contractors Timotay for the inspired design and build, and the Colonel Wells Fund, which made it all possible.
*The Colonel Wells Fund supports projects that promote education in agriculture and allied subjects and sciences, botany, geography, geology and environmental studies to Bedford School pupils.