SCIENCE, industry and the environment were the top talking points when schoolchildren from Hartlepool schoolchildren visited a terminal.
Pupils from Year 5 at St Joseph's RC Primary School got an insight into industry when they went to the BP CATS site at Seal Sands, on the outskirts of town.
The site also has its own wildlife sanctuary and the 28 youngsters learned more about ho
w it provides a natural habitat for birds and other creatures.
Jo Collins, communities liaison officer from Natural England was also there.
She said youngsters got to see and hear all sorts of birds and insects.
The packed timetable also included a nature quiz and a visit to the BP CATS control room.
The visit formed part of the Children Challenging Industry (CCI) project, co-ordinated by the Chemical Industry Education Centre at the University of York and hosted in the Tees Valley by the North East Process Industry Cluster.
It aims to improve primary school's perceptions of the chemical industry through science activities in the classroom, leading to a visit to a local company.
Mark Holmes, teacher from St Joseph's RC Primary School said the visits were always a real hit with the youngsters and tied in perfectly with the curriculum.
"It gives the children the knowledge that science has tangible benefits to the world and does not only exist in classroom experiments."
