CHRISTMAS PLAYHOUSE DESIGN COMPETITION
Local youngsters from Marleigh Primary Academy and Fen Ditton Community Primary School, part of Anglian Learning have been getting into the Christmas spirit in a novel way – by decorating Christmas playhouses. A competition organised by award-winning five-star housebuilder The Hill Group has challenged the children to create festive designs on eight houses, with prizes available for the winning house from each school.
The playhouses provide a blank canvas for the school children to turn into something festive. The children have worked in teams to conceive and deliver their designs, celebrating each other’s unique creative skills while learning about the value of collaboration. Their houses were displayed at the Marleigh Hangar Building on 3rd December 2024, when a representative from The Hill Group had the tough task of choosing the prize-winning entries.
The Hangar Building is the community hub delivered by Hill as part of its thriving Marleigh development, which includes apartments, houses, office spaces and commercial premises. The children’s Christmas playhouses were transported there ready for judging on 3rd December, with teachers and some of the primary school pupils invited to come along and talk about their designs.
Rachael Johnston, Director of Primary Education at Anglian Learning, said: “The pupils are immensely excited to be taking part in the Christmas house competition. It reflects well on Anglian Learning’s Core Values of inclusivity and community by providing an opportunity for the pupils to express their creativity individually, and by working together with their friends at their partner school. The competition serves as an empowering learning experience for our pupils, whilst also bringing them plenty of Christmas joy.”
On Friday 6th December, from 3 – 6 pm, the local community are invited to the Hangar Building to come along and see the Christmas playhouses for themselves. Pupils, teachers and families will have the chance to view all entries for the competition, and younger children can play inside the designs, as well as to enjoy refreshments and a range of crafting activities courtesy of The Land Trust. Children will also be given their own 3D Christmas house money box to colour in and take home.
Emily Thompson, Executive Headteacher for Marleigh Primary Academy and Fen Ditton Community Primary School, said: “It’s always a pleasure to see our pupils from both schools reaching high with a new challenge. They have been working beautifully together on their Christmas houses, with plenty of festive inspiration going into their colouring and crafting. Watching the pupils create their designs was inspirational and showcased how these types of opportunities are crucial in engaging younger pupils. We look forward to viewing the creations at the Hangar Building on 6th December.”
The Christmas playhouse decoration competition is one of a range of activities organised by The Hill Group throughout the year for the local community to enjoy. Community is at the core of Hill’s homes at Marleigh, where exceptional houses and apartments are available to purchase in a range of sizes and layouts. The award-winning destination is also home to open green spaces, amenities such as a local Co-op, R3FORM Pilates and Salento restaurant and Marleigh Primary Academy – one of the two schools taking part in the competition.
Rebecca Littler, Group Sales and Marketing Director at The Hill Group, comments: “At Marleigh, we have had an amazing opportunity to nurture a community and see it truly flourish. Organising the Christmas playhouse design competition and seeing how much the local children have enjoyed taking part has been a real pleasure.”
