A NEW £173,000 nursery for 30 youngsters is set to open in one of Lancashire's most deprived areas.

The building will provide places for children up to the age of five at Fairfield Nursery School, which already has spaces for 80 youngsters aged from three to five.

And, as part of the scheme, children at the school have been creating their own panels which will form part of a mural for one of the walls of the extension.

The school, in Fairfield Street, Accrington, has also had a £45,000 facelift to its playground.

The new nursery building has been funded by the Government's Neighbourhood Nursery Initiative, after Springhill was identified as being in the top 20 per cent of the most deprived wards in Lancashire.

The new facility will provide a babies room, playroom, a wet and dry area, and access to the outdoor play area.

Headteacher Liz Klavins said: "It means we can take the whole of the indoor curriculum outdoors. We use it for all teaching purposes and it's used by the parent and toddler group.

"We can teach maths, brick-building, awareness of space and shape, scientific classes and creative activities. It's definitely an asset to the community .and the work on the playground will further enhance the curriculum currently offered to all children."

Ward councillor Edith Dunstan, a governor at the school, said: "This extension is so badly needed. It's in a Neighbourhood Renewal area so anything like this is very welcome. I'm delighted, it's a wonderful school."

The playground works included the installation of hard-surfaced paths and two new child-friendly surfaces on the playground.

It was funded by the North West Development Agency, the European Regional Development Fund, Lancashire County Council, and SureStart Hyndburn, with the school contributing some money.