Saltford Parish Council was delighted to be invited to the official opening of Saltford C of E Primary School’s ‘Chatwall’ on Thursday 9th September.
Cllr Phil Harding, Vice Chair of Saltford Parish Council and Chair of Planning Committee, represented the Parish Council at the Chatwall’s official launch, which was attended by many other representatives of organisations in the area as well as those involved in the project.
The idea for the Chatwall from St Mary’s Rector Rev Daile Wilshere originated from murals elsewhere in the Diocese created during the lockdown during the Covid-19 lockdowns. The project was managed by Mrs Emma King, the St Mary’s representative on the School Governors.
An artist from the Diocese, Andy Grey, came and spoke to over 400 children at the school and they in turn produced their ideas in their own artwork for what should be included in this eight metre wide wall mural that he then interpreted into the overall artwork. It took just over two weeks to paint and the artist was assisted by children and volunteers. B&Q donated much of the paint for this community project which was funded by St Mary’s Church.
This colourful and contemporary chatwall serves as a “conversation starter” and is intended to reflect Saltford School’s three core values: kindness, honesty and respect. Those values have been incorporated in the design to represent how we as a community can work together and share those values. It provides opportunities for conversations about life, relationships, values, and faith – children and teachers asked many questions during its production and continue to do so now that it is completed. This comment from a teaching assistant at the launch reflects the level of interesting detail that it contains: “Every time I look at it, I see something new”
