A BASINGSTOKE infant school has completely transformed an area of overgrown shrubs into a pond and sensory garden.

Hatch Warren Infant School's new pond was officially opened by mayor of Basingstoke and Deane, Cllr Diane Taylor, at the start of October.

The project was started back in Autumn 2019 by the Year R team to turn an overgrown area of shrubs and mounds of earth into a learning rich environment that can be used all year round by the whole school.

It was carried out by staff at the school, with donations from Middlesex Aerospace, Brown's Skips and Martin's Tool Hire to help with equipment.

Long-term volunteer Steve Smith also turned his hand to the project too.

Headteacher Michelle Moore said: "The pond is an amazing achievement and something that the staff and volunteers who created it during lockdown should be very proud of.

"With everything that is going on in the world, at the moment, it has turned a negative - in an unused space - into a positive, with a quality environment that can be accessed by the children to support their learning.

"The pond and sensory garden have a wealth of different stimuli which will bring lots of enjoyment to the whole school community."