VULNERABLE children are finding therapy in nature.
Children at Northleigh House School at Hatton are exploring the great outdoors after Tesco’s Bags of Help scheme helped fund its wildlife classroom project.
The school – which helps children recover from anxiety and trauma associated with bullying – won £3,250 from the grant scheme to improve a wildlife pond.
Pond plants were introduced and an area was created for pupils to pond-dip.
The school also bought nets, magnifying glasses, pond-dripping trays and jars for interactive science and nature lessons.
The grant also funded a learning day with an expert who worked with the children to create a ‘living willow sculpture’ which is now a permanent feature of the garden.
School fund-raiser Lorna Perkins said: “It has been remarkable to watch the children grow in confidence as they spend more time in the garden and learn more about nature.
“They’ve loved being in the fresh air and experiencing wildlife for themselves first-hand, rather than through a textbook.
