Children and families at Elson Infants School in Gosport, Hampshire have recently given their school a makeover, thanks to a donation from the Crown Decorating Centre (CDC) in Fareham.

The three-form entry school, which prides itself on being a happy, safe and nurturing environment for all, decided to freshen up its well-loved communal spaces in the summer of 2021. Antony Stanton, a member of the school’s Parent Teacher Friends Association (PTFA), Elson Infants Fundraising Friends, approached a number of local businesses to ask for their help with gathering materials.

Antony visited his local CDC in Fareham which was more than happy to support the project. The staff at the Centre assisted the school by providing guidance on which product to choose, before sourcing and delivering 60L of paint.

With the CDC’s advice, the school opted for Crown Trade’s Clean Extreme range due to its long-lasting finish and durability. The Stain Resistant Scrubbable Matt paint was used, with its wipeable quality making it ideal for high traffic areas, leading to reduced maintenance cycles and resources. A shade of white was selected to fulfil the school’s ambition of making the environment lighter and brighter.

Due to several setbacks including Covid restrictions and flooding over the summer holidays, the painting was delayed, but in November the majority of the work was finally completed. The school was keen to involve the community in the project and invited friends and family to join a ‘painting party’ where the bulk of the decorating was done.

The main corridor and communal areas including reading spaces have been transformed so far, covering two thirds of the school. Another gathering will be planned in the coming months to complete the job.

Antony, himself a pupil at the school during his infant years, said: “For various reasons, we hadn’t got round to decorating the school in a long time. Everyone is really pleased with the results and my son even commented that the corridor is now “really bright!” The communal areas of the school are busy and well used and the paint has transformed them into a bright, positive environment. We can’t thank the CDC enough for helping us to make this project a reality.”

Christopher Thompson, Regional Operations Manager of CDC Fareham, said: “When Antony approached us in store, we didn’t hesitate to offer our support to the school’s project. Collaborating with our local community is central to our ethos at Crown and we hope our product will help the school to stay cleaner and brighter for a long time to come.”