News: February 2004

A wildlife garden that has been three years in the making has opened at Pendle Primary School in Clitheroe Lancashire.

Established on once derelict land, the garden includes wet areas, a pond which links to a nearby stream and areas set aside for 'mini-beasts'. Back in the classroom, the children can marvel at invertebrates magnified hundreds of times by a digital microscope and projected onto an interactive whiteboard.

It all seems to have come a long way from the pond-dipping that I did as a schoolboy! But at £15,000 raised by the school itself, the Parents Association and the Small Schools Regeneration fund, the potential this project has to influence the lives and attitudes of the pupils must represent excellent value for money.

Lancashire County Council. 2004. Children are exploring nature on their doorstep thanks to a school wildlife garden. Viewed on the web at http://www.lancashire.gov.uk/corporate/news/press_releases/2004/02/10/0001.asp on February 11th 2004.