Astley has announced a new sponsorship partnership with Harlow Green Primary School, kicking off its support with a creative Road Safety competition that has engaged pupils across the school.
Eli was announced as the overall winner, with Aria and Esther named as finalists.
As part of the initiative, children were invited to design artwork inspired by road safety themes, helping to address safe driving and parking around their school. Entries were reviewed by Astley’s Board, narrowing submissions down to three finalists which the Astley workforce then voted a winner from. The overall winning entry by Eli will now be brought to life as a professionally manufactured sign, produced at Astley’s Gateshead factory and installed at the school in February.
On 14 January, Astley visited Harlow Green Primary to present a monetary donation to the school and celebrate the competition winners. The overall winner and two finalists were each awarded book vouchers in recognition of their efforts and creativity.
Astley’s support for the school will continue throughout the year, including a second pupil competition planned for April, designed to keep children engaged and encourage creativity. The partnership will also see Astley employees volunteer time at the school as part of the company’s paid volunteer day initiative, supporting the enhancement of key areas at the school including the Special Educational Needs (SEN) department and the school’s Forest School space.
Before the end of the academic year, pupils will also be invited to tour Astley’s award-winning Gateshead production facility, giving them a behind-the-scenes look at how signage and brand graphics are created and manufactured for major brands.
Lucy Wright, Marketing Manager at Astley, said:
“We are thrilled to be sponsoring Harlow Green Primary this year, and our workforce have all enjoyed looking through the amazing entries by the talented children for the Road Safety Competition. It was a very hard decision by the Board to whittle the entries down to the top 3, and an even harder vote by our staff for the winner! We are also looking forward to seeing some young faces on the shopfloor as well later this year for their visit and hope to inspire some budding signmakers of the future!”
Leighanne Softley, Assistant Headteacher & SENDCo – Harlow Green Community Primary School, said:
“At Harlow Green Community Primary School, we are delighted to be working in partnership with Astley this year. The Road Safety Competition has been a fantastic opportunity for our pupils to showcase their creativity while engaging with an important message, and their imagination has shone through every design. Astley’s enthusiasm for the children’s work has made this experience even more special, especially given how difficult it was for their team to choose the finalists and overall winner.”
“Our commitment to inclusion is central to everything we do at Harlow Green and ensuring that every child feels valued and able to thrive remains our priority. Astley’s generous donation will help us purchase valuable resources that enhance our evolving SEND provision, making a meaningful difference to many of our pupils.”
“We are also thrilled that some of our pupils will visit Astley later this year, giving them a memorable insight into the world of design and manufacturing. We hope this inspires some budding sign makers of the future. Astley’s belief in showing children how creativity can lead to real‑world careers here in the North East aligns perfectly with our careers work and school values.”
Astley hopes the partnership will not only enhance the school environment, but also give children a memorable opportunity to see how creativity can translate into real-world careers – right here in the North East.
For more information about Astley and their custom signage solutions, please visit www.astley-uk.com or contact enquiries@astley-uk.com.