AN innovative initiative aimed at replacing mobile phones with alarm clocks in Newton Abbot pupils’ bedrooms has received essential funding.

Haytor View Community Primary School and Nursery was given £1,500 by Tesco’s Newton Abbot Superstore to buy clocks that don’t tick as part of its Good Night’s Sleep project.

The grant was one of three – totalling £3,000 – to come from the latest round of funding via Tesco’s Stronger Starts scheme.

Graeme Hankin, Senior Leader at Haytor View Community Primary School, said: ‘We are very grateful to Tesco for this much-needed funding. It will help so many of our pupils.

‘As a primary school teacher for 25 years, I have seen the growth in use of mobile phones by primary-aged children.

‘Many children use their phone as an alarm clock to ensure they get up on time for school. During the night, though, their sleep can be interrupted by notifications as the phone lights up or vibrates.

‘We want to get mobile phones out of children’s bedrooms and into the care of their parents during the night.

‘We will therefore use the Tesco grant to buy non-ticking alarm clocks for our Year 5 and Year 6 children to ensure they are all ready to learn in school after getting a good night's sleep.'

Tesco’s Stronger Starts scheme, in partnership with the charity Groundwork, supports many Teignbridge community projects and good causes, giving away thousands of pounds each year.

One of the other good causes to benefit from the latest round of funding was Westcliff Primary Academy in Dawlish, which received £1,000 to provide a healthy tuck shop pupils, encouraging them to eat well so they have more energy and better concentration throughout the school day.

The third organisation to receive a grant was Space DYS. It was given £500 towards a school-based initiative designed to teach students how to grow, cook and enjoy healthy food.

Janette Parker, community champion at Tesco’s Newton Abbot Superstore, said: ‘We’re so pleased to be able to help scheme like these that do so much for children.

‘Stronger Starts invites our customers to use their blue tokens to vote for local schemes they feel will benefit children and young people, and it’s so good to see the impact that the funding makes.

‘The voting with these blue tokens is so important to the local groups nominated for funding, but I know that there are thousands of blue tokens out in the community not being used.

‘So if customers have them in their pockets or shopping bags, please do use them.

‘Each organisation needs their vote, and the funding makes such a big difference to the community we all live in.’

Teignbridge shoppers can support local school and children’s groups by dropping the Tesco blue token they receive at checkout into the relevant voting box as they leave the store.

To find out more about Stronger Starts, go to https://tescostrongerstarts.org.uk