PUPILS from the White House School in Whitchurch have been helping give the areas minibeasts a new place to call home.

They have constructed a 'bug hotel' to give various insects and other creepy-crawlies a place safe from predators to survive and thrive.

Caryn Lyth, teacher at the White House School said the children had enjoyed their experience in making the hotel.

The project was helped by Justin Powell from Tress for Shropshire, a new initiative aimed at improving Shropshire's biodiversity through planting of trees, but also through the creation and installation of bug hotels and bird boxes and other similar habitats.

Speaking about Trees for Shropshire and how it tied into his work at the school, Justin said: "We decided that the best place to start making a difference was close to home, in Shropshire and the surrounding counties.

"There are many national initiatives which are doing a good job of protecting birds or wildlife or planting trees, but sometimes they can feel distant and it’s not always easy to see the changes that are being made

"The aim of Trees for Shropshire is to achieve trackable, measurable, differences in our home county and the borders

"Working together with those who care about trees, birds, hedgehogs and all the other species that live in the woods, we plan to create all sorts of habitats, from hedgerows, to thickets, to spinneys to small woods – and with enough of people on board, whole new forests full of wildlife."

To learn more about Trees for Shropshire, visit treesforshropshire.org.uk