Pitch 4 Change Success

In December 2010, 'Magic Beans' were chosen as one of the five Envision teams in Birmingham to take part in 'Pitch 4 Change'. Pitch 4 Change was a Dragon’s Den style event, in which we were able to present our idea to a panel of local business leaders in an opportunity to win a £500 grant to help with funding our project. 

We successfully received a grant of £400 with the promise of a further £100 if certain conditions are met. 

"The Magic Beans team really wowed the judges with their plans for a sensory garden. The team were commended for their excellent and professional presentation skills and for their success working collectively. The panel loved the lasting legacy the project would leave; both for the school and for the care home." 
- Envision

Here is the link to the Birmingham Post's article on the event:

http://www.birminghampost.net/news/west-midlands-news/2011/01/14/birmingham-teenagers-start-community-work-after-2k-funds-boost-65233-27980172/

- Amy

An Introduction

'Magic Beans' is a group of eight Year 12 students from King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls in Birmingham currently involved in a project run by Envision. Envision is a national education charity that inspires young people to get involved in tackling the problems of today.

As a group, we decided to tackle the issue regarding the lack of high quality green spaces for the disadvantaged in our local community. 

We've chosen to create a sensory garden in a small care home for six men with learning disabilities with an aim to help provide both mental and physical therapy. A ‘sensory’ garden was chosen specifically as we feel that a full experience of many different sights, textures, tastes and smells could really benefit by stimulating the minds of the residents. 

Viv, the care home’s manager said, “Magic Beans are doing a brilliant job on the project. I think it's really good how they’ve organised, sourced and financed it all themselves. From the point of view of the residents, the new garden will be a huge benefit for those who enjoy the garden as this is a project we wouldn't have been able to do ourselves.” 

Part of our aim is also to involve the local community and we hope that both our school and our local businesses will be able to contribute as much as possible to the project. 

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This blog has been created so that we can provide an update of our project's progress. Please check back regularly to see how we're doing. 

-Amy