Children from two Southampton schools learnt how to be citizen scientists and sustainable eaters through a project run by the University of Southampton.

The Growing Wild Citizens project, which kicked off in January, concluded on Thursday, July 6 when 30 pupils from at Bitterne Manor Primary School, in Bitterne, and at St Monica Primary School, in Sholing, visited the university to present what they have learnt. The children are all aged between seven and 10 years.

Citizen scientists from Bitterne Manor Primary

Through the project, they grew fruit and vegetables, learnt about the health and environmental impacts of different foods as well as wildlife at the school, and developed skills to be able to share their new knowledge and experiences within their communities as citizen scientists.

The project was led by university academics Dr Jenny Baverstock, Professor Marcus Grace and Dr Andri Christodoulou.

St Monica citizen scientists

Dr Baverstock said: “The project stemmed from my research looking at nutrition, where food comes from, and food security, alongside Marcus and Andri’s work on giving opportunities to children to identify and enhance the wildlife in their school grounds.”

The team also worked with Southampton City Council’s Healthy High 5 Award – an initiative that supports schools in providing healthy and fun activities for children – to deliver the project. Other collaborators included Tozer Seeds, Biocycle and Wildhive and the University Student Union volunteers.