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Johnsons Nurseries Supplies Plants For Rockliffe‘s Multimillion-Pound Transformation



One of the UK’s largest plant nurseries, Johnsons Nurseries Ltd, has continued its long-standing relationship with the five-star luxury resort, Rockliffe, supplying more than 17,000 plants and trees for its newly landscaped grounds as part of its multimillion-pound transformation.


Set within 375 acres of historic parkland near Darlington, Rockliffe has undergone an extensive transformation, including the restoration of its Grade II-listed Old Hall, enhanced accommodation, new dining experiences, and the creation of a standalone restaurant pavilion named Atlas.


The ambitious project has seen the resort's gardens and outdoor spaces transformed to complement the renovated and new buildings, creating an attractive and welcoming environment for guests.


The landscape and planting scheme was designed by Colour Landscape Architects, while Johnsons Nurseries supplied an extensive selection of shrubs, trees, instant hedging, ornamental grasses, flowering perennials and topiary, creating year-round interest throughout the newly landscaped grounds.


Among the varieties supplied were mature Scots pines, multi-stem Amelanchier lamarckii and Magnolia trees, alongside instant Carpinus betulus hedging and ornamental Taxus baccata topiary. The planting scheme also features an extensive mix of flowering perennials and ornamental grasses, including Anemone 'Honorine Jobert', Geranium 'Rozanne', Rudbeckia 'Goldsturm', Calamagrostis and Deschampsia, providing seasonal colour, texture and movement throughout the gardens.


The landscaping was carried out in-house by Rockliffe’s Estates team, led by Head of Engineering & Estates Phil Mennell.


Despite one of the hottest and driest summers, the team worked tirelessly to establish thousands of plants and trees, extensive hedging and new lawn areas, overcoming challenging conditions and tight deadlines to complete the grounds ahead of the resort's reopening.


Group Managing Director at Johnsons Nurseries, Graham Richardson, said:

"We're incredibly proud to have supplied the plants for Rockliffe’s newly transformed gardens as part of this prestigious development."

"From the restoration of the historic walled garden to this latest transformation, it's rewarding to see how the grounds have evolved. The finished gardens look fantastic, and we're delighted to have played a part in creating outdoor spaces that guests can enjoy for years to come."


Phil Mennell, Head of Engineering & Estates at Rockliffe, added:

"This has been one of the most ambitious landscaping projects we've undertaken at Rockliffe, and I'm incredibly proud of what our Estates team has achieved. Working closely with Johnsons Nurseries has been invaluable, ensuring we had the quality and variety of plants needed to bring the designs to life."

"It's been fantastic to see the gardens transform, and I'm looking forward to watching them establish and mature for our guests to enjoy for many years to come."


Emma Fletcher, Director at Colour Landscape Architects, said:

 “Johnsons have been a great support on the delivery of the new gardens at Rockliffe, assisting us on species choices and availability from early design stages and providing flexibility in deliveries to align with the challenging project programme."

"We are delighted that the completed gardens have been so well received, and a large part of that is the impact that the planting beds and stock have had.”


The completed gardens complement the resort's historic parkland setting, enhancing the guest experience and marking another chapter in Johnsons' long-standing relationship with Rockliffe, which reopened at the beginning of September.


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The University Centre at the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group is celebrating another strong set of National Student Survey results, with the Group placing higher than the national average in a range of areas.


Final year students who completed the survey praised the University Centre for its quality of teaching, learning opportunities, academic support and assessments. Over 91% of students were satisfied with the teaching on their course, with nearly 95% of students stating that their course challenges them to achieve their best work – both figures being significantly higher than the sector average.


More than 90% of students were satisfied with the learning opportunities available to them throughout their course, enabling them to explore ideas and concepts and further build on their skills to prepare them for their futures.


The same number of students also found that their course was intellectually stimulating and over 87% said that teaching staff made their subject engaging.


The survey also explores student voice, with 80% of students claiming they feel that their opinions are valued by staff across the University Centre – 4% over the national average.



Sam Wright, Principal and Chief Executive Officer at the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group, said:




“I’m delighted that so many students completed this year’s National Student Survey and to see the University Centre scoring so highly across the board. Our staff work incredibly hard to deliver an exceptional experience for our students, ensuring that they are fully supported and develop the skills needed to prepare them for their futures."

I would like to wish our final year students the best of luck as they embark on their next steps, with many of them starting career or progressing onto higher levels of academia.”


Overall, 84% of the University Centre’s students responded to the survey, against the national average of 72%.


This year’s survey received a record participation with almost 346,000 final year students across the UK providing feedback – the highest in almost 20 years.


As one of the largest surveys of its kind globally, NSS collects student opinions on a range of topics, including teaching quality, assessments and mental wellbeing services. Validated by some of the region's most well-established universities, the University Centre at the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group provides a variety of degree-level programmes, including Foundation Degrees, Full Degrees, Higher National Certificates/Diplomas, Top-Up Degrees and Teacher Training.


It covers a wide range of subject areas including Animal Management, Art & Design, Business, Construction, Childhood Studies, Digital Technologies, Education, Engineering, Health & Wellbeing, Music, Performing Arts, Public Services, Social Science, Sport and more.



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