Burraton Primary in Saltash handed £2,000 boost by developer

Persimmon Homes wants to build hundreds of new houses on the edge of Saltash. This week it turned up at one of the town’s primary schools with something rather smaller: a cheque for £2,000.

A gift for the outdoors

The donation went to Burraton Community Primary School, on Fairmead Road, and was marked with staff, pupils and local councillor Keith Johnson looking on. Burraton has been teaching children in Saltash for more than 50 years and now takes in 312 pupils a day, including 19 in its onsite Area Resource Base. It also runs a thriving nursery, with children joining from the age of two.

The school plans to put the money towards improvements to its outdoor educational space, giving children more room to learn outside the classroom.

Hannah Robinson, Headteacher at Burraton Community Primary School, said the gift would go directly toward that goal. “We are incredibly grateful to have received such a generous donation to support the development of outdoor education at Burraton Community Primary School. This funding will provide our children with even more opportunities to learn, explore, and develop valuable skills beyond the classroom.

“Outdoor learning has such an important role to play in children’s wellbeing, confidence, and personal development, and we are excited to see how this generous support will enhance the experiences we can offer our pupils. Thank you to everyone involved in making this possible and for investing in the future of our children.”

Where the money comes from

The £2,000 comes from Persimmon Homes’ Community Champions programme, which hands out £700,000 a year to good causes and community organisations across Britain. Other recent recipients in the area include Saltash Memory Café, Radford Community Centre and Plymouth Hospitals Charity.

The bigger scheme behind the visit

Persimmon’s interest in Saltash goes well beyond a single cheque. The housebuilder, which describes itself as Cornwall’s biggest, has an outline application in to bring up to 300 new homes to the town at Latchbrook Farm. Under the scheme, 30% of the properties would be reserved for a local housing association, aimed at Cornwall’s waiting list of some 25,000 households.

A site immediately north of the development has been set aside for a new school, and Persimmon says it will contribute toward getting that open, with the same funding available to improve existing schools in the area, Burraton included. The wider proposal includes active travel networks, an equipped playground, a natural play area, bike storage, biodiversity net gain and wildlife corridors, with more than half the site kept as green space. Persimmon says a successful application would bring millions of pounds in community investment with it.

Jane Cartwright, Persimmon Homes Cornwall & West Devon Sales Director, said: “As a developer seeking to bring much-needed new homes to Saltash, we felt it important to show our support to local services like Burraton Primary with this donation.

“As we know, we are sadly seeing pupil numbers at schools shrink across the county and new homes are a good way to sustain schools and keep a local presence, so Persimmon is determined to leave a positive and lasting legacy here many times over.

“We are so pleased to hear this money will go towards helping the school’s children spend time learning and making the most of the outside. We wish them all the best for the term ahead.”

‘More than a financial contribution’

Cornwall Councillor for Saltash Tamar, Keith Johnson, spoke at the school as the donation was marked.

“A gift to a school is much more than a financial contribution, it is an investment in children, their dreams and the future of our community,” Keith said.

“The strongest communities are built not only with bricks and timber, but with kindness, opportunity and people who care. Persimmon Homes has demonstrated that spirit through this generous donation.”

Keith offered his own message to the pupils holding the giant cheque outside the school hall: “To every child at Burraton Primary: believe in yourself, work hard and dream boldly, because your background does not determine your future.”

📷Credit: Persimmon Homes