Published: Saturday, 3rd May, 2008 6:00pm

Pupils are blooming brilliant

by Lorraine Tinney

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BUDDING young gardeners raised a record £2,298 from a pile of

daffodil bulbs.

Pupils from St Patrick"s Primary, in Greenock, were sponsored by family and friends to grow and tend to the flowers in a pot to help cancer sufferers.

The youngsters" efforts have helped them make the biggest single donation to Marie Curie Cancer Care from any Inverclyde school.

Head teacher Angela Kennedy, who held a special assembly to hand over a cheque to the charity, said: 'The children planted a bulb in a pot and looked after it, then decorated the pots and gave them as gifts at Easter or on Mothers Day, so they had something to show at the end of it.

'The project linked in to a lot of things we do in lessons, looking after living things and being careful about the environment.

'It encompassed the whole curriculum. It gave children ownership, supported the charity and the environment - and it was good fun too.'

Youngsters got into the spirit by donning daffodil hats and posing with bright yellow blooms during the presentation.

Brenda Johnstone, the charity"s community fundraiser, said: 'This is the highest amount we"ve received from a school in Inverclyde and the money will help our Marie Curie nurses in the district.'

She also thanked pupils for all their hard work, adding: 'Every £20 raised will pay for a nurse to care for a terminally-ill person at home.'

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