It was all smiles in Maryhill today as pupils at KELBOURNE joined teachers, parents, friends and bank staff to unveil their brand new playground.

The celebration to officially open the newly improved garden and outdoor play facilities marked the completion of a £4,000 project funded by RBS Supergrounds. This £6 million, six-year community investment initiative was launched by The Royal Bank of Scotland Group in September 2004 to improve school grounds and has already benefited over 450 schools and 120,000 children across the UK. The programme is managed by the national school grounds charity Learning through Landscapes in partnership with environmental charity Groundwork to make a lasting difference to children's learning environments.

RBS Supergrounds has been developed to strengthen the ties between company staff and their communities with staff nominating schools they have a connection with. Peter Freer of RBS became involved with the scheme through Carol Corr from Kelbourne who is a teacher at the school.

Carol said: "As a teacher I know what a difference a great playground can make to the lives of the children and I'm really proud that the bank, through RBS Supergrounds, has turned our garden into a wonderful, accessible resource and the children's dreams into a reality."

Mrs Margaret McIntosh, Head Teacher at Kelbourne, said: "The children are really looking forward to getting out and experiencing their new playground. The improvements funded by RBS Supergrounds will allow the children to have greater opportunities for learning while they play. We are extremely grateful to Peter Freer for the support and commitment he has shown to the school from the start to finish of this project."

ENDS