SCIENCE lessons have taken on a fresh dimension for a group of students who have seen what they are taught in the classroom being carried out in the workplace.

Youngsters attending the Unity City Academy, Middlesbrough, have been getting professional help with their GNVQ science course.

About 70 youngsters visited the Enron Teesside Operations Limited (ETOL) water treatment plant at Wilton, near Redcar, where they saw various filtration techniques demonstrated.

Gordon Harris, performance manager at the plant, said: "We showed them how we filter and analyse samples in the laboratory and then toured the plant to look at the large industrial sand filter units in operation.

"We also showed them how we back-wash the filters to clean and re-use the sand."

Science programme leader Ian Pountain said: "It has been brilliant. This is the third year that we have visited the site.

"In the past, the experience was so beneficial that virtually all the youngsters achieved better marks than expected and we are confident this year will be the same.

"Comparing the process we carried out in the school laboratory with what actually goes on at Wilton was tremendous."