Trinity stained glass

Schools in Irvine got involved in this competition to design two new stained glass windows for Trinity Church and contribute to the regeneration of the Bridgegate.

As part of the refurbishment of Trinity Church, we invited Irvine schools to design two modern, stained glass windows. The designs would then be manufactured and installed at the front of the church, highly visible to passers-by through the Bridgegate area.

The winning designs have now been incorporated in the refurbished Trinity Church building.

About the project

This Regeneration Youth project involved:

  • Visits by pupils and staff to Trinity Church
  • Research of the historic town centre building and its setting
  • Working closely with the designer
  • Project management activity
  • Art and design
  • Consultation with local people
  • Presentation to a panel of experts

We received an amazing response to this challenge with over 530 wonderful designs from 8 schools – 2 secondary and 6 primary schools in the area. We would like to thank the 15 teachers who took up the challenge and made the project a success.

A panel of experts was involved in selecting the winning designs which were announced at the opening of Wave, the artists' studio in Rivergate in September 2012. Rachel Janson of Greenwood Academy and Kirsten Murdoch of Irvine Royal Academy were both delighted that their designs have been chosen to feature in the refurbished Trinity Church. Runners up were Jodie Fingland and Zoe Clark, both from Greenwood Academy.

Follow up for pupils included a visit to the artist's workshop and the opportunity to see the production of the windows.

Their designs were reproduced by Susan Bradbury, Stained Glass Design Partnership in Kilmaurs into 1.5m structures. The windows have been installed at the front of the church, highly visible to passers-by through the Bridgegate area.

Irvine Bay commissioned replica windows in a smaller scale and presented them to the young designers as a memento of their involvement in the future of Irvine.

Curriculum for Excellence

The project contributes to the Curriculum for Excellence, including

  • Opportunities for partnership working with business, developing skills for work and raising awareness of career opportunities.
  • A real-life context for learning core skills such as working with others, communication and problem solving
  • An opportunity for participation in the regeneration process
  • Potential for interdisciplinary work – art, ICT, social studies, communication
  • A setting for building links between the school and the community
  • Regeneration Youth

Our Regeneration Youth strategy is about actively engaging the young people of Irvine Bay in the future of their area. The projects we develop are designed to connect local young people with regeneration both in and out of the classroom, and help them benefit directly from it.