Ben, a pupil at Silverdale Primary, near Newcastle, may be strapped for spare change himself, but his school has just hit the jackpot.

Its £5,000 prize will now be spent on creating a miners' memorial garden in the school grounds to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Silverdale Colliery's closure.

The youngsters are keen to find out more about their heritage and also want to provide a community venue which young and older generations can enjoy.

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Ben said: "We want to have a wheel in the garden, either made of flowers or out of wicker or pine."

The wheel will be a replica of the one which stood by the colliery gates. There will also be an arboretum along with memorial benches, archways, and a tranquil wildlife area.

Headteacher Angela Cheetham said: "We have been promised the last piece of coal that was mined at Silverdale. We thought we would have sculpture of a miner as well.

"Since the fire at the workingmen's club in the village, there hasn't been a central place for people to gather. Even though there's another club now, it's not the same."

Jessica Rowley, aged 11, added: "The best thing about this garden is it's going to bring all the community together. My dad worked down the mine and he thinks our project is a good idea."

Silverdale Primary was one of more than 50 schools to enter the latest Class Act competition, run jointly by The Sentinel and sponsors Barclays.

Yesterday's awards ceremony at Port Vale FC also featured star turns from the two other winning schools, St Thomas More Catholic College, in Longton, and Haywood Engineering College, in Burslem. Each school picked up a £5,000 prize to bring their dream projects to life.

St Thomas More's entry focused on plans to create a full-size catapult machine which they hope to test out against Stoke City's legendary Rory Delap.

Physics A-level students have been busy trying to unlock the secrets behind the midfielder's long throws. They have already made a small-scale version of their machine.

Now they are commissioning a local engineering company to produce the seven-foot prototype to see whose football can travel furthest – man or machine.

Deputy head Andrew Wootton said: "The project is all about physics and it's really given the subject a boost throughout the whole school."

Josh James, aged 17, added: "It's about different forces. It's making science more interesting."

Seventeen-year-old Katie Hazledine is also keen to link sport with her physics lessons.

She said: "I'm a Stoke City fan. It will be great if the school is involved in a partnership with the club."

Barclays, which sponsors the Premiership as well as Class Act, is keen to follow the fortunes of the machine. The school has already vowed not to let any other Premiership clubs get their hands on it for training sessions.

At Haywood Engineering College, pupils are using their prize money to grow their own vegetables.

The £5,000 will go towards rental costs of an allotment, buying equipment, hiring a mentor from the community to work with pupils, and also kick-starting a new BTEC course in horticulture.

Chloe Trathowen, aged 14, said: "I'm planning to do the BTEC. It's going to keep me out of trouble."

Claire Ryder, Haywood's behaviour manager, said: "We've now got links with Burslem Park and the horticulture students could be doing part of their course there, working with a park ranger."

Hamza Shah, aged 15, said: "It's great that we've won the money.

"The allotment we're getting needs clearing, but it's very big. Once we've cleared it, we can start planting some seeds."