Bringing peace and freedom to D-Day Veterans and young generations
Read the heart-warming story of the Coventry Peace Orchard, set up by Cardinal Newman Catholic School and late World War II Veteran Dennis Davison.
01 November 2022
Recent recipients of a Level 5 School Gardening Award, Cardinal Newman Catholic School have turned World War II Veteran Dennis Davison’s vision of a community orchard into a reality. We spoke to History Teacher Rhys Davies and Dennis’ daughter Heather, both of whom have been pivotal in making the Peace Orchard a place for the school and entire community to be proud of.
Remembering D-Day Veteran Dennis J Davison (1923-2019)
The idea for the Peace Orchard in Coventry came from D-Day Veteran Dennis Davison. He had vivid memories of walking through apple orchards whilst fighting in the Battle of Villers-Bocage on the 13 June 1944, one week before the Normandy Landings. In this moving Gardeners’ World feature, Dennis describes being in the orchard as some aircrafts came in. Whilst lying on the ground waiting to see if they were enemies, he picked an apple up. These apples became an important symbol for Dennis, and as a keen gardener, it was his dream to create an apple orchard on his home turf. In the 1980s, Dennis set up the charity Normandy Day UK and created the link with Cardinal Newman who would go on to bring Dennis’ dream to life.
Creating the Peace Orchard
Coventry Council permitted the orchard to be planted in a local park next to Cardinal Newman, to ensure that the students at the school could support the project, and that the wider local community could get involved. History Teacher Rhys said that despite going to bigger designers for gardening expertise, the students’ input was vital, and they were actively involved in how the orchard would look. They helped with everything from putting up benches and creating signposts to planting the apple trees themselves and litter picking. Home to around 230 apple trees, the orchard was officially opened by Dennis on 6 June 2018.
“This is better than I dared believe it would be. I shall feel very happy that the children are going to carry the message of peace and reconciliation forward.” – Dennis Davison at the opening of the Peace Orchard.
An outdoor classroom
“To summarise it very simply, the Peace Orchard is a huge outdoor classroom.” - Rhys Davies, History Teacher
As well as being a place to honour those who lost their lives, the orchard has multiple benefits for the whole community, particularly the students of Cardinal Newman. They have a real sense of pride and ownership of it and often ask the teachers if they can go over to the Peace Orchard for one reason or another. It’s a multifunctional space that gets used not just for gardening, but for school lessons, football matches, art displays and theatre productions. Dennis also set up an annual Peace Picnic, with the aim of bringing the whole community together and connecting with new people where they can enjoy a vibrant new mural painted by local artist Katie O’Sullivan.
All hands on deck
Despite taking a while to set up the project, the school have a huge network of people around them, which Rhys says was key to the orchard’s success. His advice for other schools is to get as many stakeholders on board as possible, and look for benefits across different subjects to make a case for all departments using the space. For Cardinal Newman, this included the Head of Technology organising a wood chipper to come in and the P.E. department using the space for football matches. Maths and Science departments can also make use of the space, and it gives the students a chance to get outside and develop their soft skills too. Park rangers provide constant advice, and Tom, an apple expert based in Shropshire, offers support on maintaining the apple trees and making sure they are being pruned and cared for properly.
Wellbeing and art
Like with any community project, the Peace Orchard is not without its challenges. It is more important than ever to have spaces like this where people can connect with nature and boost their wellbeing. This is particularly important for teenagers during busy and stressful times such as exam periods. Promoted in the school as a place to improve mental health, the orchard is enjoyed by young people and teachers alike for this purpose.
Since chairing, Heather has brought her own passion to the orchard, in the form of arts and wellbeing. As well as being an artist, her background is in public health. One of the events she introduced is ‘Art in the Orchard’, an opportunity to celebrate local artists and makers influenced by the natural world – from textiles and origami to painting and print.
“To get gardening into the school curriculum is amazing and to get the RHS Level 5 Gardening Award is equally amazing.” – Heather Davison
What’s next for Cardinal Newman School?
Students at the school are heavily involved in the upkeep of the Peace Orchard, with jobs including pruning the apple trees, cutting back the wildflowers, planting spring bulbs and litter picking. They have plenty of future activities planned to keep them busy over the coming months, including a project with city-based group ‘Creative Kindness’ where they will create sustainable decorations to hang in the trees. As part of the Coventry Peace Festival, on Sunday 6 November the community are invited to the orchard to hang hundreds of peace ribbons and share their messages for peace.
Follow the Peace Orchard’s progress on Facebook.