A derelict Stanley eyesore has been transformed into a colourful centrepiece for the summer.

Stanley Town Council has transformed the derelict former Stanley Board School into one of the main attractions of  Northumbria in Bloom submission, thanks to artistic schoolchildren from the town.

The project saw youngsters from St Joseph’s Primary School, draw inspiration from previous year’s academic theme of “Birds, Bees and Butterflies” to design 29 new “windows” for the school, featuring brightly coloured animals, flowers and summer scenes.

“People in the town, quite understandably, are tired of the derelict building at the bottom of the Front Street, and when Northumbria in Bloom judges visited the town in 2019, our submission was marked down due to the state of the building.  So, we decided that we would address it in the summer and I approached the building’s owners with the plan to brighten the place up and they agreed to let us carry out the project. Sadly, we had to delay the project when COVID struck in 2020, but as soon as the schools were back, we set about using the youngsters’ imagination and artistic talents to create a project of turning this eyesore into something that brightens up the area.  We’re really pleased with how well the project has worked out.” said Dave Jarvis.

The colourful displays also seem to have found favour with In Bloom judges, who now commented on how much they improved the building, and the town main shopping street.

“So much effort goes into making the town a pleasant place to be, it’s nice to get so many positive comments,” added Dave. “The great thing is, we will keep the artwork once the building is finally earmarked for development, so it will go on to future displays elsewhere in the town.

“I’d like to thank all of the youngsters and staff at St Joseph’s who have helped drive this project forward and created such eye-catching, amazing work.”

The project was made possible thanks to support from Stanley Town Council and Durham County Council.