Modus donate 500 bird box kits to schools

Stay Chirpy – a creative project for kids

In an effort to aid local wildlife and improve mental wellbeing amongst children, the Cricket St Thomas based furniture manufacturer is donating 500 bird box kits to every primary and secondary school in South Somerset.

Modus have close connections with their local schools and colleges, supporting annual arts awards, offering work experience placements and apprenticeships. They also have a rolling donation scheme where scrap wood, board and fabric is given to the Design & Technology departments of three local schools. Under lockdown they wanted to continue their support of design in education in a meaningful way that also offered a hands on and practical experience for schoolchildren whilst encouraging them to reconnect with nature and think about design.

Designed by SmithMatthias and manufactured by Modus the #staychirpy bird boxes have been produced to help inspire and encourage children to get creative during the COVID-19 lockdown. “We are hugely sensitive to the hardship people are facing, which is why we want to continue to support our local community with a number of initiatives to bring comfort and hope during this overwhelmingly difficult period,” said Modus’ managing director, Jon Powell.

“While human life is being put on hold by the lockdown, nature seems to be thriving. We want to give children in our local community the chance to witness nature at first-hand so we’ve joined forces with SmithMatthias to manufacture a beautifully designed bird box kit to distribute to the local schools.”

Children are encouraged to add their personal touch to the design through colour, shape and pattern and to send pictures of their designs via social media. The best photo will win a signed copy of the wonderful book The Science of Animals by award-winning conservationist Chris Packham. Look out for the designs on Instagram over the coming weeks – @modusfurniture @smithmatthias #staychirpy