A school near Penrith has found a new way of boosting their pupils mental health.

Pupils and staff at Yanwath Primary School held a grand opening of their brand-new nurture garden, which has been named the ‘Wild West’, on Friday April 30.

The new outdoor learning space is aimed at boosting the mental health of pupils by giving them a space to learn, play and explore at the same time.

The idea for the garden came to light after teachers and staff noticed that the mental health of the children had deteriorated after returning to school from lockdown.

Yanwath Primary teacher, Matthew Crouch, said: “We had some children who came back and were really anxious about being back in a classroom and just stepping away from their parents.

“The older the children were, they were more aware of the fact that they were socially isolated.

“They weren’t able to see their friends and they were more reluctant to come on the screen during video calls for lessons.

“It was about building them back up and getting them to have more of a positive outlook on coming back to school.”

With the help of businesses and volunteers, the school had part of their playing field renovated to make way for the nurture garden.

The garden includes an outdoor classroom with chairs, flowers, a bug hotel, and a vegetable patch.

Mr Crouch added: “It’s come about really quickly over the past four weeks, and now we’re just ready to get in and start using it.

“It’s been a real team effort from the teachers, the parents, and from local businesses.”

In a statement, Yanwath school said: “As a school, we wouldn’t have been able to carry out the renovation work without the support of our PTA and the local businesses.

“We have to say a humongous thank you to Metcalfe Plant Hire Ltd, Dalefoot Composts, Cumberland Building Society, Huws Gray Penrith, Travis Perkins, A.W. Jenkinson (Forest Products) Limited, Relphs, Hardy's Tyres Penrith Limited, Northlakes Glass & Glazing, O'Malley Plant Hire Ltd, Byorderofthewoods, Chambers Garage, Tyla Services Ltd, Yorkshire Trading Company, John Richardson & Sons Timber Merchants and Tigna.”