GREEN-FINGERED pupils from a Teesside primary school have reaped £1,000 to help expand their gardening ideas.

Lakes County Primary School, West Dyke Road, Redcar, beat hundreds of other schools throughout the country to win an award in the BT Grounds for the Future scheme.

Their idea was for a project to improve the school grounds to make a better educational and play environment.

The school was awarded £1,000 towards the further development of its grounds through wildlife habitats, the enhancement of marsh land and the introduction of a number of elements to improve both teaching and learning opportunities.

The plans include deepening a pond, introducing composting facilities for children to use when gardening and the provision of nesting and bat boxes.

Pupils had already made a major contribution to earlier development plans and have been consulted regularly about their future use and development.

Sponsored by BT, the scheme is run in partnership with two national charities, Learning Through Landscapes (LTL) and the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers (BTCV), and has the support of leading environmentalist Sir David Attenborough.

In addition to the cash award, the school also won a year's membership to both of the charities.

Gary Burn, project manager at BT Grounds for the Future, said: "The standard of entries was very high, which made the judging very difficult. However, Lakes County Primary School impressed judges with their plans to encourage staff and pupils to work together to create an environment condusive to learning and that will benefit the local community as a whole."

All primary, secondary and special schools throughout the Teesside area are invited to enter the next round of awards.

The closing date is Tuesday, October 31. Application packs are available by contacting LTL on (01962) 846258. Alternatively, they can be downloaded from the supporters' page on the BTCV website - www.btcv.org.

The scheme offers schools cash awards, ranging from £100 to £1,000, from a total prize fund of £60,000, as well as professional advice and support from trained advisors