For the past seven weeks, Ningana Enterprises have sent a group of their clients out to Yoogali Public School to help maintain and improve on the school's gardens.

The partnership was masterminded by Ningana social worker and former Yoogali Public School student Richard Watts and he said the idea behind the partnership was to encourage some of the clients he works with to get out of the house and involve themselves with the community.

"While I was working with the boys, we were just doing games," Mr Watts said.

"Working for the school gives them a sense of direction.

"It's good for the boys to have a direction in their life, not working full-time they need things to do to keep them out of trouble and give them a healthy lifestyle, to be part of the community."

The partnership has so far proven fruitful, with a number of plants and crops donated from Riverina Nursery and Greengecko Garden Centre planted along the entrance to the school, as well as the addition of a foundation of bark chips in one of the school's gardens to help prevent weeds from growing.

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However, the partnership's latest project aims to be their biggest yet as they look to repaint the bus shelter which sits just outside the school gate on East Street.

Principal at Yoogali Public School Leanne McWhirter said the repainting was planned to be repainted in an indigenous style, with the promotion of the Aboriginal Eight Ways of Learning aiming to help decorate the shelter.

"This has been a little project that we've wanted to do for quite some time," Mrs McWhirter said.

"The bus shelter was in a little bit a state of disrepair and was quite rusted and did have some beautiful aboriginal paintings on it.

"They [the children] love having them here and the boys love being here and seeing the kids, but we haven't worked closely until [Wednesday] and this project."

However, both students and Ningana clients alike shared the joy in giving a helping hand to the painting, dipping their hands in and leaving a hand-mark along the edges of the shelter.

The shelter is due to be finished in two weeks, but both Ningana and Yoogali Public are looking to keep the partnership going, with plans for the addition of a native garden along the Burley Griffin Way side of the school.

Mr Watts said the group from Ningana get a big kick out of attending the school and said they would be happy to help any other schools who get in contact with them.

"I think we started off doing two weeks, but I think we are going to be here for two years!" Mr Watts said.

"They love being at the school with the kids... [there is] big smiles when they see us coming."

Mrs McWhirter said the school wants to continue the partnership into next year and beyond.

"It's a fantastic partnership and I love seeing the boys come every week and you can tell they like being here, they've always got a smile on their faces," Mrs McWhirter said.

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