CHILDREN at a Trowbridge primary school have been learning about road safety - with help from Wiltshire Council’s team of gritters.

Two employees from contractors Ringway turned up with a large gritting lorry - Arnold Schwarzegritter - and a parish steward vehicle to give them a lesson in how to stay safe crossing the roads.

The pupils at Castle Mead Primary School in Mascroft Road, Paxcroft Mead, listened carefully to Mark Hawkins-Wyatt and his son-in-law Adrian Harding-Wyatt.

Mel Jacobs, the school’s business manager, said: “This is quite a tricky estate in terms of road safety, with lots of traffic going through it and on the main road.

“The Ringway staff have been giving a resource-based lesson to our Year 3 pupils to help them stay safe.”

The Ringway employees brought with them two bat boxes to donate to the school, which were gratefully received by Sophia, 10, Natalia, 11, and Joseph, 11, three members of its School Parliament eco group.

Mr Hawkins-Wyatt said: “It’s part of our corporate social responsibility. We are allowed to have two days a year to give help to the local community and schools.”

Castle Mead Primary School has received £950 funding from Wiltshire Council’s Trowbridge area board to create a pond in its nature garden and provide a bird table.

The bat boxes were donated by Ringway because the school’s logo is a bat, after the rare colony of Bechstein’s bats which are found in the local area.

Mrs Jacobs added: “They will enable the children to learn more about their local environment, wildlife and climate change.”