Press release —
Two Birmingham schools take home ‘Best in Show’ for winning wheelbarrow designs at BBC Gardeners’ World Live 2026
Two unique wheelbarrow garden displays, designed by Birmingham school children, have been awarded ‘Best in Show’ for their showstopping designs, at this year’s BBC Gardeners’ World Live.
St Martin De Porres Catholic Primary School in Moseley and Erdington Academy were voted the winners of Health For Life®’s School Wheelbarrow Competition in the Primary School and Secondary School categories respectively. An annual feature of the BBC Gardeners' World Live Show, the competition involved 44 primary schools from across the region encouraging schools and children to showcase their creativity by transforming wheelbarrows into vibrant visual displays of living fruit, vegetable, herbs and floral plants.
Complementing the BBC Gardeners’ World 2026 campaign, ‘Make a Metre Matter’, children were encouraged to ‘Make a Meal Matter’, exploring where the ingredients in their favourite meals come from by growing from seed, helping to build an understanding of sustainability and food provenance. The winning wheelbarrows were selected by an esteemed panel of gardening expert judges at the event, including, BBC Newsround presenter and allotment enthusiast, De-Graft Mensah, a leading promoter of the BBC ‘Make a Metre Matter’ campaign.
The winning Primary School Wheelbarrow, designed by St Martin De Porres Catholic Primary School and named after Birmingham’s famous dish, ‘Brum’s Balti Barrow’ featured home-grown ingredients for a homemade Balti curry dinner, including ginger, turmeric, tomatoes, onions and chillis. The wheelbarrow also incorporated wheat to represent naan bread, and mint for a yoghurt dip, all of which were grown from seed or tubers in the school greenhouse.
Meanwhile, Erdington Academy impressed the judges in the Secondary School category with their ‘Afternoon Tea’ design, which incorporated the smells, tastes and colours of a classic British afternoon tea, including mint, lemon balm, chamomile and alpine strawberries.
Alongside the primary and secondary categories, Somerville Primary School in Small Heath received the ‘Judge’s Choice’ award for their trolley display, a specialist category, introduced this year for six previous school barrow winners. Oasis Academy Hobmoor in Yardley and Allens Croft Nursery in Lifford were selected as favourites by members of the public for their vibrant and innovative displays.
This year’s competition saw 12492 public votes cast from across the four-day event, with visitors viewing a total of 50 different displays from participating schools.
The annual wheelbarrow contest is a feature of Health for Life®, an award-winning, evidence-based partnership programme which promotes fun activities that engage people in growing food, physical activity, healthy eating and cookery. Funded by Mondelēz International, since 2011, it is delivered through schools and to the wider community in Birmingham by The Conservation Volunteers (TCV) and Services For Education.
S. Stephens from St Martin De Porres Catholic Primary School said: “We are delighted to hear the news that our students won this year’s wheelbarrow competition for their ‘Brum’s Balti Barrow’ design.
“Our students have worked incredibly hard to grow the food from scratch and have learned a lot from the growing experience, so it is wonderful to see their efforts recognised.”
J. Halstead from Erdington Academy said: “Our students fully embraced the challenge of creating an ‘Afternoon Tea’ themed wheelbarrow, showing great imagination and teamwork throughout the project. They enjoyed every stage of the process, from developing their ideas to seeing the finished design come together. This recognition is a fitting reward for their creativity and commitment.”
Kelly Farrell, Community Affairs Manager at Mondelēz International, added: “Every year, we look forward to seeing the wonderful wheelbarrows designed by local Birmingham school children as part of our Health for Lifeinitiative.
“This years’ entrants have been no exception – delivering an amazing showcase of creativity and execution of incredible gardening skills. We would like to congratulate the winning schools, as well as all the children who took part, for their fantastic work and enthusiasm.”
For more information about Health for Life, visit www.servicesforeducation.co.uk/health-for-life/.
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Notes to Editors
About Mondelēz International
Mondelēz International launched the Health for Life programme in 2011 and is continuing the company’s long-term commitment to work in partnership, delivering a wide-reaching and successful healthy lifestyle programme within Birmingham.
Mondelēz International, Inc. (Nasdaq: MDLZ) empowers people to snack right in over 150 countries around the world. With 2025 net revenues of approximately $38.5 billion, MDLZ is leading the future of snacking with iconic global and local brands such as Oreo, Ritz, LU, Clif Bar and Tate's Bake Shop biscuits and baked snacks, as well as Cadbury Dairy Milk, Milka and Toblerone chocolate. Mondelēz International is a proud member of the Dow Jones Best-in-Class North America and World Indices, formerly Dow Jones Sustainability Indices. Visit www.mondelezinternational.com or follow the company on X at x.com/MDLZ.
About Health for Life®
- · Health for Life is an evidence-based programme supporting children and adults in Birmingham to live healthier lifestyles by engaging people in growing food, physical activity, healthy eating and cookery.
- Health for Life was introduced in 2011, funded by Mondelēz International with an investment of £5.4 million to date, and delivered in schools by Services For Education and in the community by The Conservation Volunteers.
- The programme has now engaged 239 Birmingham schools comprising 195 primary, 26 nursery and 18 secondary schools benefitting 86,000 pupils. It has also involved around 192,600 adults in the city including teachers, parents and community members, with a total reach of around 278,600 people.
- Over 1,560 Mondelēz International employee volunteers have given practical support to programme schools and community spaces.
- Health for Life has developed 20 community food growing spaces and continues to deliver Green Gym activities in seven locations.
- The programme has received national acclaim, receiving the Food and Drinks Federation Health and Wellbeing Award; Business in the Community’s ‘Big Tick’ and awards for both the Health for Life show garden and separate schools’ wheelbarrow displays at BBC Gardeners’ World.
About Services For Education
Services For Education is a unique charity that uses the power of learning and of music to create and build confidence amongst children, young people and adults in communities across the West Midlands, delivering educational programmes to support the wider community to become the best people they can be, regardless of their background. The organisation is the delivery partner for Health for Life in primary schools and has supported the programme since its launch in 2011.
For more information, visit https://www.servicesforeducation.co.uk/health-for-life/.
About The Conservation Volunteers – www.tcv.org.uk
Since 1959, The Conservation Volunteers has been a charity creating opportunities for people to create, improve and care for nature in the green spaces around them across the UK.
Our variety of projects cover a bit of everything involving nature. Volunteers muddy their boots in parks, community gardens, woodland, sites of special scientific interest, nature reserves, schools and hospital grounds, helping create a glorious network of protected green space across the UK.
This work connects people with nature, and that connection delivers powerful results.
