AN ECO-FRIENDLY packaging design got success all wrapped up for five and six-year-olds at a Gwent school.

Pupils in Year One at St Francis RC Primary School, in Abersychan, won the 3M primary innovation award at the competition final.

And yesterday their proud head teacher, Mo Archer, presented the youngsters with their prize of a framed award and box of goodies.

The 25 children designed the sustainable, biodegradable packaging after learning about recycling and the environment in class. They looked at Bubble Wrap and other ways of wrapping fragile things, and tried to find a more environmentally-friendly way of doing the same thing.

With the help of class teacher Linda Green and classroom assistant Jenna Powell, the children invented a cardboard package folded into a jack-in-the-box design.

Because of this concertina design, the box springs up and down but doesn't compress sideways, and its contents are kept safe. The children decided to use masking tape to seal the parcel, because sticky tape does not decompose.

They then tested the design using their head teacher's precious china mug, which was wrapped and sent through the post.

When the package arrived, it was kept sealed and presented to judges in both the competition heat and in the final on Thursday. Mrs Archer said: "The children asked the judges if they wanted a cup of tea or coffee, and when they said "yes", they gave them the sealed parcel with its postmark for them to open and see if it was in one piece."

She added: "I was delighted to hear the class had got through to the final, but then it meant trusting them with my best mug again."

Judges at the final were impressed when they saw the package had not just protected the mug once, but twice on its journey through the post, and the class took home first prize.

Mrs Archer said: "The design was very clever. It was very impressive, really."