Children at St Mary’s Primary School in Chippenham will soon be taking advice from older pupils thanks to a new scheme launched this week.

A team of 21 Year 6 pupils has been trained in peer mediation and will give other children facing conflict the chance to sort out their differences and reach an outcome they both agree on.

The scheme was set up under the guidance of Sarah Crayford Brown, a barrister and mediator, who hopes pupil mediators will solve problems without the need for adult intervention.

Mother-of-three Mrs Crayford Brown, who has two children at the school, said: “Peer mediation has some key advantages for the school – it empowers children and teaches them key life skills. It also encourages them to sort out their differences soon after they arise with the help of another child, and often results in common sense solutions.”

The launch of the project follows a number of training sessions in which pupils looked at the causes of conflict in school, and the different ways children react when they fall out with friends.