A HEREFORD school is celebrating the first harvest of its new allotment, which will provide freshly grown produce for its students.

Pupils at Whitecross High School created the garden after an idea emerged from the Greencross Council, a group of students charged with the task of promoting green issues and recycling across the school.

With the support of Selina Smith, a geography teacher in charge of promoting sustainable lifestyles, a group of students and staff have transformed an under-used garden area of the school with the aim of growing fruit and vegetables.

The intention is to supply the kitchen with fresh organic vegetables for use in school dinners, as well as provide produce for sale at the Whitecross Fete.

"There is a lot of talk at the moment about healthy eating and school dinners," said Miss Smith.

"What better way to encourage young people to think about what they eat than by getting them to grow it? I think Jamie Oliver would be pleased."

Whitecross has already won several awards for its environmentally friendly building design and has the Bronze Eco Schools Award for promoting green issues.

The allotment is part of a programme created by students that includes paper recycling, mobile phone recycling, plastic bottle recycling and composting of kitchen waste.