ARCHITECTURE students from Newcastle University have designed and built a state-of-the-art wildlife hide on Bakethin Reservoir - and crucially, they've even made it midgie proof!

Kielder Water & Forest Park Development Trust's Living Wild project, funded by the National Lottery, has supported nine architects of the future to create the new viewing structure in time for the ospreys’ return from Africa.

Sam Halliday, one of the sixth year MA students involved, said it had been really exciting to turn their designs into a building people will be able to use.

"Rather than just doing 'paper' architecture, this is about us literally being on the ground doing it ourselves so that we have a better understanding of what's involved for those constructing our designs.

"We've learned basic timber construction methods, project management, lead times and sticking to a budget."

Kielder Water and Forest Park presented particular challenges to the team. "It's very off-grid, as most of Kielder is, so there was no electricity and most of the work had to be done off small generators."

Construction began back in December and the hide is expected to open to the public in time for Easter.

Interestingly, despite Kielder being full of timber, the hide did not utilise trees from the forest. "A large portion of Kielder's timber is exported so to get hold of it within the budget was surprisingly difficult," said Sam.

But the upside was that the timber they did choose had insect repellent properties said Sam.

"We chose charred larch for the external cladding," Sam said. "

The Living Wild programme at Kielder has been made possible thanks to a £336,300 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. "The whole project is aiming to reconnect people with wildlife," said Lynn.

This is the latest in a series of joint projects between students at the university's School of Architecture and Kielder Art & Architcture.

The Rochester roundhouse and the Stonehaugh star gazing pavilion are other examples.

"We chose charred larch for the external cladding," Sam said. "It has a number of beneficial properties - aesthetically it's really nice as it gives a crocodile skin effect. And by being burnt, it becomes a natural insect repellent."

The split level design of the hide makes room for serious birdwatchers and more amateur family groups.

"It's split into two pods. The higher level pod overlooks an osprey nesting pole and other parts of Bakethin lake, including a view up towards Kielder viaduct.

"The other pod has tall vertical windows that you can look through into the forest. We've tried to provide for a larger demographic of people rather than just keen birdwatchers.

"But one of the overriding design features was to make it fully accessible as the previous hide here wasn't."

Lynn Turner, Director of the Kielder Water & Forest Park Development Trust, paid tribute to the students' hard work: "The commitment and dedication they have put in has been absolutely tremendous," she said.

"I must also say that the role of Peter Sharpe, curator for the Kielder Art and Architecture programme has been pivotal, as he acts as a a link between the Trust and the students."

The 140 hectare Bakethin reserve, looked after by Northumberland Wildlife Trust, was created when Kielder dam was constructed in 1979. Wrapped around the northern edges of Kielder Water, it offers a diverse range of habitats, including open water, wetland, woodland and grassland, and is a wildlife haven.