A DARLINGTON schoolboy’s love of wildlife has netted him a national prize.

Rydal Academy pupil George Stephens, 11, designed a bird-box fit for king(fisher)s recently.

His imaginative design – featuring a swimming pool for birds - came out top in a nationwide competition launched as part of Wilko’s WildBird campaign.

Schoolchildren from primary schools across the country were urged to think outside the box and create a home for wild birds.

Hundreds of entries were received with George’s bird pool design being selected on the basis of it being a “fun and original idea”.

George said: “I’m very proud because I wasn’t expecting to win and I was really shocked when I found out.”

His prize includes a year’s worth of wild bird food, a ‘twitchers’ pack’ with tips for spotting and looking after wild birds and a bird table that will be set up at his school.

John Armitage, headteacher of The Rydal Academy, said: “We were really proud when we found out that George had won and we can’t wait to set up the bird table and feeders in our school grounds.

“It will be a great opportunity for the children to really begin to take notice of the range of birds who visit our area.

“Bird watching is really educational and can support the curriculum in areas including geography and art.”

Judges said the 417 competition entries were made up of imaginative designs including pirate ships and bird hotels.