School pupils bury Covid-19 time capsule at housing site

Work by pupils at a school in Widdrington Station will be read and viewed by future generations after it was buried at a nearby housing development site.
Pupils from Grange View Church of England First School visited the Grangemoor Park development and buried a Covid-19 time capsule.Pupils from Grange View Church of England First School visited the Grangemoor Park development and buried a Covid-19 time capsule.
Pupils from Grange View Church of England First School visited the Grangemoor Park development and buried a Covid-19 time capsule.

After housebuilder Gleeson discovered that staff have been collating memories, drawings, poems and letters by the children over the last year in lockdown and the Covid-19 tier system, it suggested putting them together and adding to them for a time capsule.

And 20 excited pupils from Grange View Church of England First School, escorted by headteacher Louise Laskey, were invited to the Grangemoor Park site for a ceremony.

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They arrived in their hi-vis jackets and were presented with their very own green Gleeson Homes hard hat. When the capsule burial took place, it was covered and marked by a new blossom tree – signifying hope for the future and new beginnings.

The work in the time capsule included drawings and paintings.The work in the time capsule included drawings and paintings.
The work in the time capsule included drawings and paintings.

The International Time Capsule Society has been informed and the capsule is registered with the Digital Preservation Trust.

Mrs Laskey said: “We were thrilled to be asked by Gleeson Homes to be part of its time capsule project.

“The children were given the opportunity to collect together memories of lockdown, including stories, artwork, letters and photos, to bury at the site.

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“They loved writing, drawing and talking about what they could pop in the time capsule and provided a huge amount of work for Gleeson to choose from.

“Visiting the site and seeing the time capsule be buried was such a great experience that I’m sure they will remember for the rest of their lives.”

The pupils were also given a health and safety talk by the Gleeson team about the dangers of playing on building sites, the importance of wearing the correct PPE and how to signal that equipment is moving around the building site which was demonstrated by the on-site forklift truck driver.

Ed Alder, operations director at Gleeson, said: “The children really enjoyed seeing the building site in action, learning about the importance of safety and burying the time capsule that they have worked so hard on.

“I hope if generations down the line find the capsule, they can reflect on what has been an extraordinary time for us all.”

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