A group of Year 8 students from Corbridge Middle School in Northumberland are championing biodiversity by inspiring other schools to take up gardening.

The Go Green Gorillas, a team of 12 and 13-year-olds, won the Young Green Briton Challenge in June 2023, impressing the judges with their creative ideas aimed at encouraging more children to venture outdoors and grow their own food.

Their winning project involved the production of hundreds of wildflower seed packs and custom made grow-your-own-meal sets.

Adele Brown, head teacher of Corbridge Middle School, said: "I could not be more proud of the supportive work the children are doing.

Hexham Courant: The team is distributing a book, seed packets, instructions, and a voucher for compost and pots to

"Taking responsibility and sharing this important message with younger children will hopefully mean that more and more children understand the natural world around them and can do their bit to further increase biodiversity."

The Go Green Gorillas capitalised on their success by raising £1,700 from their award winnings given by the Green Britain Foundation and EdenTree by organising plant sales in school.

They're using the funds to engage more schools, while advocating for the National Education Nature Park, an initiative led by the Natural History Museum and the RHS.

Their mission is to help schools in the northeast, particularly those that might not qualify for federal funding, to obtain the necessary resources to enhance their natural surroundings and cultivate their own food.

Hexham Courant: The group visited Corbridge First School, Whitley Chapel C of E First School, Slaley First, and

The team is distributing a book, seed packets, instructions, and a voucher for compost and pots to 16 schools.

They visited Corbridge First School, Whitley Chapel C of E First School, Slaley First, and Whittonstall First, delivering some of the kits.

Meryl Batchelder, science teacher at Corbridge Middle School. said: "Hopefully by doing something incredibly charitable at such an early age, they will carry this attitude with them through life.

"The Go Green Gorillas have a passion for being changemakers who want to make the world a better place.

"They have unbridled energy and enthusiasm but just need an occasional hand to guide them."