STAFF at the Kingfisher School in Abingdon say a new seating area and sensory garden would make an “unbelievable difference” to pupils.

The school, which teaches youngsters aged two to 19 with severe and multiple learning difficulties, is in the running to win the Oxford Mail Save Our Schools competition.

If it wins the £7,500 building work, it plans to build a new outdoor covered area which will give pupils a place to sit and play, and also revamp its sensory garden.

The Oxford Mail has teamed up with Abingdon-based construction company Leadbitter for the second time to offer the prize.

Teaching assistant Sue Tucker put together the school’s application.

She said: “It would make an unbelievable difference.

“The older children tried to do a bit of work but the sensory garden has started to be overgrown. For the children in wheelchairs it is just another world for them.

“They can come out here and listen to the birds and different things around them.”

Kingfisher School is one of the five schools hoping to win the money.

The other finalists are New Marston Primary in Oxford, Edith Moorhouse Primary in Carterton, and Wheatley and Launton primary schools.

Mrs Tucker believed her school stood a good chance of winning.

She said: “Because of the range of children we have here with different disabilities, for those with sensory impairments to be able to feel and touch and smell things, because they are not able to physically move, would make a whole world of difference.”

All five schools’ projects will be featured in the Oxford Mail, and the tokens will be printed in the paper every day, alongside bonus tokens during the competition.

School staff, pupils, parents and friends will look to collect as many tokens as possible before the last one appears on Saturday, July 17.

Oxford Mail sales manager Margaret Marsh urged people to cast their votes.

She said: “This is a fantastic amount of money which will make a very real difference to the school that wins. It’s not difficult to take part and your vote could make all the difference at the end.”

Votes will be counted up and weighted according to the number of pupils in each school.

Readers who want to support one of the finalists should send their tokens directly to the school.