STUDENTS from Tavistock College are celebrating after receiving the news that the school has achieved Level 4 in the RHS Campaign for School Gardening.

The countrywide campaign aims to encourage and support schools to develop and use their own garden.

An impressive 18,000 schools are registered with the scheme and are working through the various levels.

Teacher Helen Harris, who is overseeing the initiative, said: 'At the moment only 224 schools are working at Level 4, and we believe Tavistock College is the first secondary school in Devon to be awarded this high level.

'It is usually gained more easily by primary schools that have more resources and time to dedicate to their garden.'

Tavistock College is part of a co-operative which includes Tamar Grow Local.

The school has been involved with horticulture since 2011, when a herb bed was created to feed the college's resident animals from the BTEC Animal Care course.

The gardening process is led by the students, who choose what they want to grow before planting and nurturing it.

Finally they harvest the produce and have the opportunity to cook and eat what they have grown.

The scheme also gives students a lesson in economics, as they sell the surplus to staff for the best price they can get.

Last year they raised £70 in this way, which was put back into the department budget, whilst a Year 11 raffle of produce raised another £70 for the Red Cross.

Principal Helen Salmon said: 'There are students involved from every year in the school, so it's a really positive of way of getting year groups to mix and work together with the same aims.

'The school garden adds extension to a whole range of curriculum studies — the obvious one being food tech and the less obvious, subjects like foreign languages and religious studies.'

Other educational value gained from gardening activities includes learning about sustainable aims.

The garden has water butts and compost bins, and students learn about local varieties of fruit that are in danger of dying out. Working in the outdoors contributes to improved mental and physical health.

In the autumn term, students planted thousands of bulbs around the school.

In the spring, these will add a riot of colour to the school, both outside and in the classrooms.

Surplus flowers will be sold to raise further funds for the garden.