A PAVING supplier is pitching in with Huddersfield Town to run a schools gardening project.

Birkby-based Marshalls plc, which also has operations at Elland, has signed up as an official partner of Town ahead of the forthcoming season.

Now they have launched Pitch In, a competition for youngsters aged seven to 11 at local junior schools to design a garden for their school grounds.

The winning design will be turned into reality by Marshalls at the school and on a smaller scale at Town’s Canalside training complex.

Schools have until December to complete their entries which will be judged by Examiner gardening correspondent Graham Porter and representatives of Marshalls and Town.

The club and the company will also promote Marshalls’ Carbon Cops initiative, a project to encourage schools to reduce their carbon footprint.

Town commercial director Sean Jarvis said: “We are delighted to announce that Marshalls has come on board and is now part of the Huddersfield Town ‘family’ of partners.

“We have already added a number of nationally-recognised partners to our ‘family’ ahead of the new season and are delighted that a market leader such as Marshalls has chosen to come on board.

“I look forward to seeing how our schools competition Pitch In goes.”

Neil Davidson, Marshalls’ corporate social responsibility manager, said: “Our partnership with Huddersfield Town is the latest in a whole host of initiatives from Marshalls driven towards making a positive impact on the community around us.

“The club has an excellent portfolio of business partners and we are delighted to join them as official partners.

“We hope that by combining our expertise and enthusiasm for sustainability with Huddersfield Town’s links with schools to really make the next generation aware of the benefits of cutting their carbon footprint.”