Monks Orchard Primary School held a grand community art exhibition at St Georges Church hall in Shirley over the royal weekend of 18th May 2018.

The worshipful Mayor of Croydon Toni Letts opened the exhibition with the help of the children from Monks Orchard Primary, supported by their families and the local community.

The exhibition, called 'The Hive,' featured collaborative work by the children of Monks Orchard Primary, their parents and families, staff and local residents.

‘Everyone has been working together, which has been fantastic for local morale and just shows what you can achieve as a community,’ said Julie Bernard (parent).

‘The work is of a very high standard and I know that people will be shocked to find that most of the artists from the school range from 3yrs to 11yrs,’ Stephanie Mitchell local illustrator.

The centre piece was a giant bee made from willow and carnival tissue, suspended from the church hall rafters.

Guy Fairbairn was full of praise for the children ‘We are immensely proud of the work our children do and to show their fantastic creativity in public is a great opportunity for us.’

Local head teachers, businesses and members of the community were all invited to the opening, which packed in the numbers over the weekend even with the popularity of the Royal Wedding and the FA cup.

Extracted from the Croydon Guardian Newspaper Article