EDUCATION Pupils’ artwork unveiled at children’s hospital

ART created by pupils from Cardiff’s Kings Monkton School has been unveiled at the new £6m Ronald McDonald House at the University Hospital.

The house, which provides free accommodation, kitchens and living areas for families of young patients at the Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital, opened this month.

Pupils’ artwork was produced to bring moments of comfort and solace to the families using the accommodation.

The ambitious project saw pupils of all ages collaborate to create a series of paintings and sculptures which showcase aspects of Welsh culture, scenery and heritage.

The walls of bedrooms, hallways, and stairwells are decorated with brand new canvasses, and the foyer contains a sculpture of a Welsh dragon embellished with more than 1,000 hand-made daffodils and a dedicated ‘handprint wall’ made up of the handprints of each of the pupils that contributed to the project.

There is also a commemorative plaque that recognises the legacy of the Trust for Sick Children in Wales, a separate charity that provided free family accommodation in Wales for many years, and which helped bring together the parties involved in the new facility.

At the unveiling, principal of Kings Monkton School Paul Norton and Julian Bowen-Sargent, house manager at Ronald McDonald House, added their own handprints as the finishing touch to the canvas.

Mr Norton said: “This project is extremely close to my heart. I benefited from the support of a Ronald McDonald House when my own son, William, became ill when he was just two weeks old, and I’ll never forget the kindness and support I received during such a difficult time.

“I’ll be forever thankful that these facilities were available to my family.

“It’s an incredible privilege for Kings Monkton to be able to come together as an entire school to create something lasting that helps bring a small comfort to other families during their time of need. We’re so proud to have been able to contribute to this important project.”

Julian Bowen-Sargent added: “We’re immensely proud of our new Ronald McDonald House and are confident that we’ve created a safe-haven for families in need of our support.

“The artwork provided by Kings Monkton is a beautiful addition, and one that we’re sure will bring moments of peace and comfort to our families, many of whom will stay with us for weeks or even months at a time”.

Throughout the school year, pupils at the school also received visits and lessons from Joanne Roe, the founder of Tonypandy-based company, Craft of Hearts, and worked with a local up and coming artist, Aidan Myers, who created the project’s centre piece, situated in the reception area.