With all manner of gadgets and gizmos taking priority in the lives of our youngsters and environmental issues at an all time high it has never been more important to introduce children to the long lost skills of growing and gardening. To promote this the UK's leading gardening charity, the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is launching a nationwide campaign and competition to Get Schools Growing'.

Schools across the UK are being asked for their help to share information on how they currently grow plants in school, what barriers there are to gardening projects and what successes they have had in bringing learning to life through the environment.

To enter the competition and complete the questionnaire go to www.rhs.org.uk/schoolgarden Every school that completes the survey can go on to enter the RHS competition, which is backed by Blue Peter Gardener Chris Collins. Chris will help one of the winning schools to develop plans for growing in their school.

Chris Collins comments, "The urge to grow plants and touch the soil is embedded in all of us, every child without realising it, deep down, is a gardener. We need to bring out these gardeners and give kids the chance to grow plants and understand that plants play a role in everything we do. Working with the RHS, is a chance for me to work direct with the winning school in the competition to Get Your School Growing.' I hope that this will help to inspire ideas and innovations to make gardening an essential element of school learning.

"Get your school to complete the RHS questionnaire and enter the competition to win support from RHS gardening experts to develop a new growing space in your school plus £500 of gardening resources. I'll be working with one of three winning schools to help make the ideas come to life."

The competition is part of the RHS Campaign For School Gardening that aims to get every school to benefit from growing. The Campaign will use competition and questionnaire results to determine how schools are using plants and gardening.

This research will be used to develop and enhance RHS online resources to help teachers, parents and children of all ages to enjoy gardening and learn about growing plants. The Campaign also aims to help schools to win awards for their progress and support healthy and environmental schools initiatives.

RHS Head of Education Ruth Taylor comments; "As the UK's leading gardening charity the RHS is already helping over 5,000 schools (over 400,000 children). This support is through free school visits to gardens, RHS outreach programme - Flourish - working in schools, our current schools membership scheme and CPD training for over 600 teachers a year.

"We believe it is a fundamental right for every child in the UK to have access to the social and physical benefits of gardening. The mission for the Campaign for School Gardening is to help the RHS make the dramatic up-shift from supporting 5,000 schools to eventually helping every school in the UK. We aim to realise this mission by developing comprehensive on line resources to show how gardening can bring learning to life on virtually any curriculum subject at different levels and ages. Our vision is to back these resources with hands-on support from RHS gardening experts in every region in the UK."

-ends- Notes for editors To enter the competition and complete the questionnaire go to www.rhs.org.uk/schoolgarden RHS Get your school Growing Competition criteria: Closing date for entries April 13th 2007 Winning schools will be contacted by June 29th 2007 and thereafter results will be posted on the RHS website.

The competition is open to all schools teaching all those up to Key Stage 4 in the UK and Eire. Only one entry per school will be accepted. The work submitted should be the work of pupils and teachers. A prize of £500 to develop the growing space at a school and five days help from a trained horticulturalist will be awarded in three categories.

1. Early years and key stage 1 2. Key stage 2 3. Key stage 3 and 4 The overall winner will be awarded a further prize of a visit from Blue Peter Gardener Chris Collins to help this school implement its plans.

Schools need to complete the online registration and then send your competition entry items (including A3 plan, any photographs and your 300 word statement) to: Get your School Growing', School and Family Learning, RHS Garden Wisley, Woking, Surrey, GU23 6QB The name and address of your school must be clearly visible on the entry Responses to the registration questionnaire are valued even without an entry to the competition and these will help make the new RHS Campaign for School Gardening relevant to as many schools as possible.

For more on Royal Horticultural Society Learning See www.rhs.org.uk/learning