PRIMARY school pupils who transformed a muddy wasteland into a blooming garden have won their way through to the regional finals of a national competition.

Edmondsley Primary School reception class teacher Chris Baker said the entry to the Greenfingers Challenge germinated after four and five year olds started a project to improve a muddy bank running length of four classrooms.

The pupils, who decided to create a rockery, got soil from Durham Waste Management and grew a numbers of plants from seeds. The school is the only one from County Durham through to the regional finals of the contest run by the charity Environmental Campaigns and is up against three others from the North for a place in the national finals.

Mrs Baker said: "It was very much a joint effort between pupils, parents and the community."

The school also got help from Houghall Agricultural College.