A NEW community garden at a North-East school will soon be producing a range of vegetables thanks to a donation of seeds from a flourishing local company.

The community garden, complete with greenhouse and allotment, has been established at Skerne Park Academy, in Darlington, over the summer holidays.

Darlington MP Peter Gibson co-ordinated the project, with Darlington Borough Council, Darlington Rotary, and several local businesses providing sponsorship and volunteers.

Now, Mr Gibson has been back to the school to deliver a large collection of seeds, donated by Darlington-based family business Pretty Wild Seeds.

The MP said: “It’s a great demonstration of people working together, and a lovely way to teach children life-skills and to appreciate nature. I’m looking forward to coming back to the school to see the produce once its grown.”

Stuart Price, of Pretty Wild Seeds, said: “We want to share our passion for growing and we found out about the community garden at Skerne Park through Mr Gibson. We loved the sound of it, so we wanted to donate a good range of seeds to help the children get started.”

Skerne Park Academy head teacher, Clair Gooding, said: “The community garden is a wonderful addition the school and we’re so grateful for the gift of such a lovely range of seeds that will enable us to produce our own vegetables. The children are really excited about watching everything grow.”

Pretty Wild Seeds, based in Valley Street North, has gone from strength to strength since it was launched in a spare bedroom by partners Andy Ivison and Paula Cox in 2004.