Classes in the great outdoors

Committed parents, teachers and governors are planning a range of fundraising events to drum up funds to build an outdoor learning centre for Saddleworth pupils.

Delph Primary School’s Parent Teacher Association (PTA) needs to raise £20,000 to build the woodland shelter in the school grounds, which they say will bring the pupils closer to nature.

Featuring wooden benches and stools, learning spaces, a whiteboard to aid teaching and surrounded by trees and wildlife, the semi-enclosed shelter promises to spruce up land that was affected by water works completed on the grounds last year.

But the building won’t come cheap, so the PTA has set about the mammoth task.

It started the ball rolling with a glitzy launch at Saddleworth Golf Club, complete with three-course meal, raffle and auction, which saw donations flooding in. More events will be held in the coming months.

Claire Holland, PTA secretary, said: “This is going to help the pupils make the most of the outdoors, and make them more aware of the outdoor environment.

“United Utilities completed a lot of work at the school last year, so we’re helping to put something back into nature.

“We’ve got a grant that has helped us get under way and some of the work has begun, to test the ground and get it prepared.

“The children are really excited, because they’re going to be able to have lessons outside, and picnics in the summer, and the learning facilities will be great.

“We’re hoping they can help us with the final designs and decorations of the shelter when we’ve raised enough to get to that stage.”