EXCITEMENT was in the air at Burbage Primary School on Tuesday (Nov 7) when animal expert and TV presenter Steve Backshall visited to plant the first tree in the school’s new orchard.

The orchard will form part of a memory garden and also attract more wildlife into the school’s grounds.

While there, Mr Backshall met the children during the afternoon assembly, telling them about some of his amazing wildlife encounters and adventures.

The Deadly 60 presenter has hosted a number of nature and adventure shows, including Big Blue Live, Extreme Mountain Challenge and BBC Alaska Live.

Burbage primary school governors chairman Emma Butler said: “Steve is very well known by the children for his TV programmes and we were delighted that he brought his enthusiasm for the wild world to our school.

“He was keen to hear about the way we use our school grounds to attract and provide habitats for wildlife and the children enjoyed telling him about their class projects to help the natural world.”