Pupils from Kings Road Primary School in Rosyth have teamed up with Fife Housing Group and local organisations to create a colourful new mural celebrating their community.

The artwork was unveiled at a special event organised by pupils as part of Fife Housing Group’s Rising Community Voices project.

The initiative sees the social landlord partner with schools across Fife to help young people learn more about what it means to be part of a community. Pupils are supported to plan and deliver a project or event that has a positive impact on their local area, helping them develop practical skills, work together and give something back to their community.

Fife Housing Group Engagement Officers Melissa Birrell and Ruth Reid held regular sessions with pupils at Kings Road Primary School, supporting them to develop their ideas and plan the event while encouraging the children to take the lead.

The pupils decided they wanted to create something special for the school entrance and came up with the idea of a mural made from individual ‘tiles’, featuring drawings created by pupils and colleagues at the school.

They also reached out to organisations in the local community and invited them to create their own tiles. Those getting involved included Stephen’s Bakery, Rosyth Dental Care, Rosyth Community Council, Rosyth Parish Church, Hilton Court Care Home, Acrobay Gymnastics Trust and Sainsbury’s.

Local business Panda Print also contributed a tile and generously offered to produce the mural and some vinyl artwork for the windows, free of charge. Working alongside the school and Fife Housing Group, the team transformed the individual designs into an impressive large-scale installation.

The finished mural was revealed at a special community event featuring performances from the school choir, refreshments and an opportunity for guests to see the artwork up close and hear from the pupils behind the project.

Reflecting on the project and the partnerships that helped bring the mural to life, King’s Road Primary School Headteacher Lynn Colagiacomo said: “King’s Road Primary School is extremely proud of the strong partnership links we have developed across our school community and of the positive impact these relationships have on our learners. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Fife Housing for their enthusiastic engagement with our children and for supporting opportunities that help develop confidence, creativity and important skills for life and work. We are also very grateful to Panda Print for their support, expertise and creativity in bringing the community artwork together so beautifully.

“The finished piece is something our whole school community can be proud of and will be enjoyed by children, families, staff and visitors for years to come. This project is a fantastic example of what can be achieved when schools and community partners work together and we look forward to continuing to strengthen these valued relationships in the future.”

Highlighting the enthusiasm and creativity shown by the pupils throughout the project, Fife Housing Group Engagement Officer Melissa Birrell added: “This is the third event we’ve hosted with primary school pupils as part of our Rising Community Voices project and we were delighted to bring it to Rosyth. We have lots of tenants in the area and the wider community is always keen to get involved with what we’re doing locally.

“The pupils at King’s Road were no different. They had a fantastic vision for the mural, were natural event planners and really took ownership of the project. It was wonderful to see their ideas develop from those first conversations into something that will now have a lasting place in their school.”

Following the success of the project at Kings Road Primary School, Fife Housing Group hopes to continue Rising Community Voices with more schools across Fife.