GREEN-FINGERED students at a Huddersfield centre will soon be given the chance to show off their skills.
A new £3m day care centre being built on the site of the former Highfields School in Edgerton will offer a wide range of courses – and gardening is set to feature strongly on the new curriculum.
The new centre is being built in a bid to further improve day-care services in Kirklees by catering for those with individual needs.
Officials claim the many benefits include keeping people active and healthy and also helping them gain control over their own lives.
The new centre, on the site of a former special school, will be open seven days a week and also outside traditional day-care hours.
It will give people the option to attend different sessions and drop in to the centre when it suits them.
The activities on offer could lead to work and further education for those who attend the centre and can broaden future opportunities.
The plans for the new centre include a state-of-the-art building with full accessibility both inside and outside.
Activities for adults with learning disabilities and those who need social care and support will include gardening.
Facilities planned for the centre include a garden equipment store, polytunnels and greenhouses. Plans include landscaping for a path network and an access ramp and a working garden for the clients to practise and showcase their gardening skills.
The building work started in August 2008 and is set to be completed and ready for opening by August this year.
Services from Swallow Court in Huddersfield town centre and Lindley Special Care Unit will be transferred to the new site once it is opened in the summer.
A Kirklees Council spokesman said it would not mean a cut in support and day care hours.
He said the centre will be open seven days a week and would also be open later at weekends.
The aim was to attract more people by making the centre more flexible to the needs of the clients.
