Empingham CE Primary School has been awarded £4,500 from the Big Lottery Fund to develop a woodland walk in its grounds.

The space will be used by pupils and the wider community and will feature a pond, bird hide, ecological area, sensory garden and willow tunnel.

Class teacher Katy Smith was delighted their lottery bid was successful as the cash will give the project a major boost.

Mrs Smith said: "The woodland walk will be for the children to use for their education but also for the community to enjoy."

The project is part of Empingham Primary School's commitment to the extended schools programme in Rutland which encourages integration between schools and the local community. An unused area of school land will be transformed by a band of volunteers who will restore the old pond and create a theatre area with tree stumps for the children to sit on while they discuss their work.

The garden will have flowers, fruit trees and a vegetable plot along with a willow walk which the children will help to build. The pupils also plan to create a mosaic as a focal point of the garden.

Mrs Smith said: "The school council played a big part in planning the project. They were keen to have a school garden where they can sit at playtime and have some of their lessons."

The school's parents association will also make a donation to the project, which is already underway.

The lottery cash has rounded off a good year for the primary school, which is also celebrating the outstanding success of its former year six pupils in their SATS tests.

The children, who have now moved on to secondary school, scored 100 per cent in their level five science and English tests this year which is well above the level four standard primary schoolchildren are expected to achieve.

Headteacher Claire Rowbotham said: "It's a fantastic achievement and something we are very proud of. The news of their success is phenomenal."