A NORTH-EAST school plagued by trespassers is to get £240,000 from the Government for major security improvements.

Eastbourne Comprehensive, in Darlington, is one of only two schools in the country chosen to receive the money as part of a pilot project.

Panic alarms, swipe cards, security cameras and extra fencing and lighting will be installed at the school, which has 800 pupils.

If successful, the approach is likely to be extended nationally.

A Darlington Borough Council spokesman said the bid was made to "help combat vandalism, thefts from the school and threats of violence from trespassers".

Terry Bladen, a maths and special needs teacher at Eastbourne, said any initiative to improve the safety of staff and pupils was welcome.

"We have had people coming on site and causing problems and anything which helps with that is a positive move."

He said the design of the school made it vulnerable to intruders. "Eastbourne is a very open site and there are a lot of entrances. Keeping those secure is a difficulty."

Eastbourne's acting headteacher, Karen Pemberton, said pupils had been asked to contribute ideas for the scheme, which will be funded by the Home Office, the Department for Education and Skills and the Department of Health.

"A recent survey of pupils on their fear of crime revealed their concerns about a range of issues as diverse as intrusion by trespassers down to pupils smoking on site," she said. "The technology will be aimed at combating these problems"

The Government is spending £4.6m in total on improving safety for the two schools, plus two hospitals and an ambulance service.