Taylor Wimpey steps in to help with memorial garden

A living memorial for youngster Arissa Khan has been created at her playgroup with the help of Taylor Wimpey High Wycombe.

A beautiful garden has been created with help from housebuilder Taylor Wimpey at Terriers Playgroup in High Wycombe, as a living memorial to little Arissa Khan, one of the playgroup’s pupils who sadly passed away last year.

Arissa was in her first term at playgroup and just a week away from her third birthday when she died in hospital after developing a chest infection last October.

Staff and parents at the playgroup at St Francis Church Hall in Amersham Road, close to Taylor Wimpey’s Kingshill Grange development of new homes in High Wycombe and which Arissa’s two older brothers had previously attended, organised a collection to create a memorial garden which would reflect Arissa’s love of playing outside.

Two living willow structures were planted in April – a den for the children to play in and a tunnel for them to walk through – with sun-catchers and star-shaped mobiles hung above.

However, the garden was still looking a little forlorn with patches of dying grass in places – so the playgroup approached Taylor Wimpey, which is building new homes at Kingshill Grange in Kingshill Road, just around the corner from the playgroup, to ask for a donation of some turf.

Playgroup supervisor Katherine Keep takes up the story: “Taylor Wimpey very kindly and unexpectedly offered to let their landscape gardener come round to see what he could do to help.

“He suggested he could make a sandpit, which we were very grateful for, and he also put a fence up to enclose the willow den and laid some new turf to really finish it off. He also put some big posts in the garden where we have hung musical instruments. The children love both the musical instruments and the sandpit – they are used every day.”

Torrential rain on the day the gardeners visited did not deter them in their work and Katherine adds: “They were very enthusiastic and they took on board what we said and really worked hard. And they came an awfully long way – we thought they were only coming from the development round the corner but they came from Ringwood in Hampshire. It really was above and beyond!”

The playgroup garden is now a wonderful memorial to Arissa with parts specifically designed to reflect her personality.

A sign reading ‘Arissa’s Den’ made in clay by Katherine and two of Arissa’s friends hangs outside the willow structure and leaf print stools have also been ordered because she was fascinated by falling leaves during the autumn term.

Katherine added: “We’ve also got a talking telephone, which is a tube with one end in the den and the other outside. Arissa was very articulate and would have loved sitting in there talking to her friends.”

Tim Betts, Regional Sales and Marketing Director for Taylor Wimpey, says: “We are always keen to support the local communities in the areas where we are building new homes, but this project was one which we felt was particularly deserving and we were really able to make a big difference.

“We are really proud to know that the children at Terriers Playgroup now and in the future will be able to enjoy this beautiful garden which will provide a living memorial to Arissa.”

Kingshill Grange Sales Information Centre is located off Kingshill Road, High Wycombe, and open seven days a week between 10.30am and 5.30pm.