The final piece of the jigsaw has now been put in place regarding the transformation, by a team from RBS International, of a neglected area outside a Ramsey care home.

Thanks to staff from the Bank – largely in the operations department – Glenroyd in Lezayre Road now boasts a sensory garden complete with flower beds, plants and herbs.  Not only that, the area includes a 24 ft long mural based on the theme of Manannan’s Cloak and incorporating the name of the home.

Original intention had been to accumulate ?1,000 by various fund-raising efforts to carry out the flower bed reconstruction and gardening work.  However, the fund-raising efforts were so successful that once this had been done, around ?500 still remained in the kitty so a cheque for this amount was presented, on the day the mural was officially handed over, to Glenroyd manager Paul Ormond-Smith.  The money will be used to stock the borders of the sensory garden.

Focal point is the 4 ft high mural, the artwork for which was completed under the direction of staff member Leanne Mathews.  Gillian Fowler, Planning and Change Manager at RBS International’s Isle of Man Service Centre, explained: ‘Leanne drew the outline for the fresco and this was then transferred on to boards using an overhead projector.

‘We had to find a place within Howard Pearson House in Victoria Road where the boards could be worked on - quite a task in itself.  Leanne then instructed us as to which colour went where and the finished product was erected at Glenroyd by our facilities and building maintenance company Prospero. 

‘The mural part of the project took about 145 man hours.  Although the gardening aspect only involved seven staff, around 20 were able to get involved on the mural itself when the boards were brought to Howard Pearson House.  Our plan was to have everything in place by September 8th which was Glenroyd’s 10th anniversary.

Glenroyd is a registered home run by the charity Praxis Care, providing residential care for five young men with profound learning difficulties and who, in addition, have physical impairments and complex needs.  Manager Paul Ormond-Smith said he was delighted with the mural and the donation from RBS International. He added: ‘It is truly outstanding and will be admired by both residents and visitors. 

‘As any gardener will tell you, producing a garden takes time and effort and requires nurturing.  The donation of ?500 will enable us to stock the borders with a variety of plants, thus ensuring it will be a tranquil place of beauty and enjoyed by our residents for a long time to come.’

* Most of the labour for the project was provided by RBS International staff during their volunteering days or in their own time.

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