On 9th May, over 40 staff volunteers from ARI, our retail business at daa, headed to St. Mary's National School in Oldtown to work with Difference Days to create three special outdoor areas for this lovely school. 

As the sun shone, the team worked hard to build, plant, and paint an outdoor classroom, a horticultural area, and sensory quiet space that all the children of the school will be able to use all year round. 

The school students treated the volunteers to a welcoming performance and presented each of them with brilliant hand-drawn pictures of the school, thank you cards, and signs. 

The weather really was on our side as everyone worked together to bring this space to life all in one day. The energy on the day was clear to see with the smiles and laughter, and with the music playing, it was a fantastic day that was all topped off with some ice cream treats for the students and the very warm volunteers. 

We were delighted to see the project captured on RTE news2day recently with the students proudly showcasing this space at their school for others to see and be inspired. To see their report please visit here.