A GROUP of green-fingered students with learning difficulties have raised more than £150 for charity after starting their own horticultural business.

The Seevic College students have their own garden at the college in Kiln Road, Thundersley, with greenhouses and a polytunnel.

Under the company name Nature Calls Team Enterprise, they grow tomatoes, strawberries, runner beans and bedding plants to sell.

Any profit goes to buying new plants for the garden and to charity. So far, the venture has raised around £150 which the students donated to Little Havens Children’s Hospice and the Mushroom Theatre Company, which teaches students with disabilities.

Tutor Helena Scogings said: “The scheme allows students to run their own business, make decisions, work as a team and understand basic business terms.

“They also get to meet others and get experience of handling money and writing cheques.

“Most importantly, the students love what they do.”