Community mural unveiled

Children from the Beechfarm Estate worked alongside Ordsall Community Arts to design and paint the mural which now takes pride of place in Margaret’s Garden on Kingsley Road.

The project was funded through an £825 grant our Your Salix, Your Say fund, which provides grants to worthwhile projects that aim to improve the community for the benefit of everyone.

15 children aged between seven and 14 took part in the project and drew inspiration from their surroundings to create the nature-themed mural for Margaret’s garden, which was opened in 2008 in memory of
of Margaret Gallagher, former secretary of the Beechfarm Residents Association.

Carol Lawley, treasurer of the Beechfarm Resident’s Association, said: The idea behind the project was for the children to take a bit of ownership of it to make them proud of where they live.
The kids have enjoyed taking part so much and the mural looks fantastic – it’s really brightened up Margaret’s Garden. I’d like to say a big thank you to Salix Homes for funding the project and also to Ordsall Community Arts for bringing it to life.

Two butterflies take pride of place on the mural in memory of popular Beechfarm residents Bill and Brenda Burroughs who had lived on the estate for more than 40 years.

Brenda sadly died in 2009 and Bill died last year and their daughter Tracie Burroughs is honoured they have been remembered on the mural.

Tracie said: I wanted butterflies because every time I see two butterflies together it represents my mum and dad coming to see that I’m okay, so this really means a lot to me to have the butterflies on the mural.

A multi-million pound investment programme to breathe new life into the Beechfarm estate is currently underway. Salix Homes is investing £6 million into the estate as part of its Decent Homes improvement programme.

Work got underway in the summer to overhaul 466 properties complete with new kitchens, bathrooms, windows, doors and heating systems.

Sue Sutton, our director of customer and neighbourhood services, said: We are very proud to support the Beechfarm community with their mural project. It looks fantastic and really compliments the wider investment we are making in the estate as part of our Decent Homes work. We hope this vibrant new mural will be enjoyed by the entire Beechfarm community.