They say that the best ideas often come out of the blue, but in this case, a fantastic idea came out of the grey!  It was a grey rain-laden sky which forced some of us Cawston Greenway volunteers to shelter under the underpass while we had our coffee break, one Wednesday morning.  The underpass, whilst being perfect for shelter, had a neglected feel about it: dirty, damp and definitely in need of some attention.  As we stood there drinking coffee, the conversation veered into how we could engage a group of School Leavers to ‘give something back’ to the community as part of their Leavers’ Programme.  Jokingly, I said, ‘Well, they could always do this’ and pointed to the walls of the underpass.  And that, is exactly what they did…

Over three days in June, 50 Year 8 Leavers from Bilton Grange Prep School, led by the Head of Art, Mr Green and the Head of Year, Mr deBruin, beavered away on the underpass to create a fantastic new mural.  Under the guidance of Mr Green, the children had looked at the history of the Greenway and of the Rugby area.  They researched famous Rugbeians, the sport of rugby, local iconic buildings and the flora and fauna of the area. Working in teams, they prepared the surfaces by painting them with primer.  Another team added sky and land, while a different team sketched out the different parts of the mural.   A final group added the detail and finishing touches to the designs, and a once drab, dingy underpass was transformed into a bright and welcoming environment.

When you’re next passing through, see if you can spot the following elements:

Guy Fawkes’ House

Rugby School, The sport of Rugby

Various modes of transport

Famous Rugby sculptures

A homage to Lewis Carroll

Armistice Day

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee

The Clock Tower and Market Place

The Macready Theatre

Rugby’s inquisitive minds

Praise for the NHS (the children revamped an excellent mural already in place)

Shrek/troll (nothing to do with Rugby necessarily, but don’t all bridges have trolls under them?!)

Huge thanks and congratulations to all involved but particular thanks to Mr Green for his vision for the mural and his organisation.

Well done all – you’ve done a fantastic job!

Victoria Dodsley (volunteer)