Year Seven students at St Peter’s Catholic High School have participated in a competition run by Northern housing developer, Northstone.
As part of the school’s ‘Curriculum for Life’, which is designed to help pupils develop the knowledge, understanding and skills they need to manage their lives, now and in the future, Northstone was invited to set students a challenge so they could learn more about different career options available.
The students were challenged to design a bedroom for one of Northstone’s new homes at its upcoming Tulach community. Tulach, meaning ‘green place on a hillside’ is located at the disused Pemberton Colliery site, in Wigan. Students were encouraged to consider all aspects of the room from the design, colours and layout, to the materials used and the rooms functionality. It was also important that the room was designed with sustainability and energy efficiency in mind, a key aspect of all Northstone homes.
The competition ran from the 21st June to 15th July 2021, and the 15 winning students will be part of a five-year project with Northstone at Tulach. Throughout their five years at St Peter’s the winning students will take part in site visits and fun activities at Tulach, as Northstone creates a new community in Wigan. In addition, the overall winner will work with a Northstone interior designer to bring their winning design to life in one of the show homes at the new development.
Zach, who joined St Peter’s from St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Wrightington, is the lucky student whose woodland inspired design captured the judge’s imaginations. Zach’s design wowed the judges, and went above and beyond to ensure that it captured Northstone’s focus on sustainability and energy efficiency. The design incorporated natural materials such as wood and stone, was inspired by nature, and even included a treehouse bunkbed.
Jo Allen, Head of Partnerships and Development at Northstone, said: “At Northstone, we are committed to working with our communities to create opportunities for local people, no matter their age. It was a joy to work with St Peter’s, and the students didn’t make judging easy. The creativity and consideration that went into each and every entry was clear, and we are so looking forward to welcoming the 15 winners to Tulach so they can get a sense of what goes into building our homes. Congratulations to Zach, your design was inspired and we can’t wait to see it come to life!”
Catherine Welch, Head of Curriculum for Life at St Peter’s Catholic High School, said: “St Peter's Curriculum for Life is designed to help learners develop the knowledge, understanding and skills they need to manage their lives, now and in the future. We place a lot of emphasis on providing pupils with opportunities to experience a range of career focussed activities. We are so pleased that our link with Northstone has allowed this to happen even before pupils begun their Year 7 journey and will continue throughout their time with us.”
