Normanton Road Raised Planters go from eyesore to eye catching thanks to new mural

Published: 29 August 2023

A prominent section of Normanton Road has been given a boost from nature thanks to a series of new murals inspired by young people in the local community.

Murals have been painted by local artist Todd Jerm, and plants and flowers have been added to walls and planters on Normanton Road as part of a partnership between Derby City Council, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and The Pakistan Community Centre, funded by the Home Office’s Safer Streets 4 programme.

The artwork has been inspired from drawings by young people at the Pakistan Community Centre’s summer holiday activity funded club. Derbyshire Wildlife Trust’s Community Organiser, Adam Dosunmu Slater and Youth Worker, Ruth Richardson visited the community group and asked them to draw something which represented nature and the community. Many students chose animals they had seen in Arboretum Park, such as foxes and squirrels, and others commented on the culturally diverse and exotic shops that make up Normanton Road.

Artist Todd took the drawings as the basis for his work and split them into distinct themes across the three-tiered area owned by a local business.

On the largest wall, a wetland mural has been created to celebrate the nature found on Arboretum Park’s wildlife area, with local birds on the surrounding walls. Along the bottom section of the planters, mammals that are common to Derby have been painted. The middle row has grass and flowers native to Britain and the top row shows the skyline with a rainbow.

Finally, an inspirational message of “BEE ONE NORMANTON” takes pride of place on the side wall to show the community spirit that has endured across the generations.

Derbyshire Wildlife Trust’s Adam Dosunmu Slater is pleased to see the changes:

“It’s so great to see another space for wildlife in the Arboretum area and even better that the young people that live here get a chance to be part of that change. Now when they walk past, they can say we played a part in designing that and have ownership and pride in their community.”

The project is part of Nextdoor Nature, a wider programme of nature themed regeneration in Derby. Through this initiative, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust is working with local groups, schools and Derby City Council, to facilitate the creation of a Green Corridor between Normanton and Arboretum Parks and improve pockets of green space for urban wildlife.

Around the corner from the raised planters is the first area to be redesigned for nature - Society Place, a walkway which connects Cummings Street and Provident Street. Working alongside Derby City Councils Locality Team and Derbyshire Wildlife Trust, Arboretum Primary School children have looked to change this, redesigning the area with fruit trees and a herb garden.

Councillor Hardyal Dhindsa, Derby City Council Cabinet Member for Streetpride and Communities said:

“Normanton Road is such a busy, vibrant shopping centre, used by those across Derby and the East Midlands. This area has often been blighted by fly tipping and littering. That’s why I am so excited to see the transformation of the area using the designs of the young people of Normanton to create this amazing mural. This is truly a local community project with a local artist creating the work; local children providing the inspiration and our local businesses supporting the initiative and hopefully looking after it with our local community of ‘One Normanton’.”

Amjad Ashraf and Asia Bibi from the Pakistan Community Centre, commented:

“At the Pakistan Community Centre, we take pride in our community and look to show the children who come to our Community One Holiday Club (funded by the Council’s Holiday Activity and Food Programme Fund) the importance of creating a healthy environment for people and nature. We were so pleased to have the opportunity for our cohort to be part of a positive change in their community and hope their work can be leave a lasting legacy for Normanton Road.”

Local artist, Todd Jerm added:

“I live in Normanton and really love the area, especially Normanton Road. These days you never see a high street with so many independent businesses, they all look the same. I had seen the raised planters before and it looked pretty bad, so it’s nice to give something back and brighten the area up. Whilst doing the work, I had lots of nice feedback and I really enjoyed working on this project.”

Find out more about Nextdoor Nature  on the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust website.

Children, Community