Children at a Bradford primary school have been getting a taste of the great outdoors – despite being based in an inner-city area.

Lower Fields Primary School on Fenby Avenue in Bowling is taking part in the John Muir award – a programme to help increase children’s awareness of nature.

For the past few weeks, 12 pupils at the school have taken to the school’s grounds and enjoyed building dens, making art out of nature and getting involved in other activities that seem to have been lost in the days of computer games and social media.

The children, of all abilities, are now just a few more weeks away from completing the programme, and they plan to show their parents their good work when they are done.

The school may be in the middle of a deprived area of Bradford, but has plenty of outdoor space around it. Since the programme has started, the dozen children taking part have made the most of the site and got closer to nature in a way many in the area don’t normally get a chance to do.

The John Muir Award is a national scheme, started in 1997 and named after the renowned conservationist, to re-introduce young people to nature. It aims to instill four goals: discover a wild place, explore its wildness, conserve – take personal responsibility and share experiences.

Although groups in the Bradford District have taken part in the programme before, this is the first time it has happened in the school environment.

The staff at Lower Fields say the project has “transformed” the pupils taking part, and urged other schools to get involved.

Once a week, the 12 children involved leave the classroom and spend the rest of the day on the school grounds. Among the activities they have been involved in is making artwork inspired by environmentalist sculptor Andy Goldsworthy – which will still be enjoyed by pupils long after those involved this year have moved on.

Learning mentor Umar Khan said: “We are fortunate in that our school is situated on a very large piece of land. Over the last few years we have enhanced the land by adding a pond with a bridge, nature area and woodland.

“In the past few weeks the children have built dens, made blind trails, made their own Andy Goldsworthy-inspired art, planted shrubs learned about environmental issues and made mapsticks inspired by native Americans to name a few activities.”

He said the scheme has proved so successful that they will likely continue with such outdoor activities in future years.

Mr Khan added: “It has been nice to see children from different groups and abilities working together.

“I would highly recommend that other schools do it. There is not much for kids to do in this area, so we wanted to get them involved in something they wouldn’t normally get to do on a regular basis.

“A lot of parents worry about sending their kids out to parks – something like this gives kids a safe place where they can get our and enjoy nature. It creates an environment where they can just go out, explore and have fun being kids.

“We have spent time doing things like building dens with tarp and rope - this isn’t something children in this area get to do every day.”

He said the change in the pupils taking park is obvious, and looks forward to their parents coming to see their hard work once the project is complete.

Scottish born John Muir dedicated much of his life surrounded by nature, making numerous expeditions and had a hand in creating Yosemite National Park.