Funding for children to use seed bombs to attract butterflies back to Swale

KENT Community Foundation awards funding for 5,000 children to plant seed bombs as part of an arts and environmental project.

The not-for-profit theatre group ‘Circo Rum Ba Ba’ had received Arts Council funding for theatrical environmental conferences for twenty primary schools in Swale and Sheppey. The conferences will investigate environmental issues and the children will work collaboratively to present their ideas in a fun, positive and creative setting. At the end of the conferences ‘Circo Rum Ba Ba’ wanted to give each class a kit containing the ingredients and instructions to make a seed bomb with bee and butterfly-friendly seeds and educational information about the flowers and the insects they should attract. 

Having secured funding for the environmental conferences from the Arts Council, they applied to Kent Community Foundation’s Environmental Fund for a grant to provide the seed bombs.

Josephine McCartney, Chief Executive, of Kent Community Foundation, said:

“Circo Rum Ba Ba shared some research from local environmental groups which revealed that five types of butterflies had become extinct in Swale. Their plan to encourage school children to plant seed bombs and record the results fitted perfectly with our Environmental Fund criteria. Our Environmental Fund supports charity and community group projects which embody the ‘think global, act local’ sentiment and facilitate dynamic change to enrich nature, connect people with green spaces and enable more sustainable and healthier ways of living across Kent. We were delighted to award ‘Circo Rum Ba Ba,’ who had not applied to us before, the funding to purchase the seed bombs.”

Marianne Grove, Artistic Director, of ‘Circo Rum Ba Ba’ said:

“The £2,492 grant from Kent Community Foundation to provide seed bombs will allow five thousand young people to feel that they can make a difference in their local community. We will provide templates for the children to record information about the bee and butterfly activity that the  seed bombs generate which we hope will show them how small actions can have a large impact on the environment and encourage them to take more interest in what is happening in their local area.” 

The ‘Circo Rum Ba Ba’ theatrical environmental conferences will be held in primary schools across Swale between January and March 2023. 

To contact Kent Community Foundation about funding for charities and community groups call 01303 814500, email admin@kentcf.org.uk or visit: www.kentcf.org.uk/funding.