A summer of celebrations to mark 150 years of a beloved village school has begun with a special service in an East Hampshire church.

Members of the Froxfield Primary School community made the short journey to High Cross on Monday as a Service of Celebration was held in St Peter’s.

The Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire, Nigel Atkinson, was among the guests for the service led by the Bishop of Portsmouth, The Rt Rev Dr Jonathan Frost.

The school’s 107 pupils attended the service along with governors, parents, pre-school children and members of The Hangers community.

“Our Chair of Governors, Gillian Hollis, gave a really interesting talk about the school’s history and the older children were actively involved in the service,” said Froxfield Primary School headteacher, Vickie Farrow.

The school will be 150 years old on July 3 with a range of celebratory events in the pipeline to mark the milestone.

Vickie added: “We’re planning a pilgrimage for the children to Froxfield Green, where the school started 150 years ago, on the day of the anniversary itself.

“The service was the start of our anniversary celebrations and we’re also having a circus on the village field in June.”

Happy Circus will come to the King George V Playing Fields on June 16 with a big top behind the village hall. Food and facepainting will be offered from 4.45pm with performances taking place from 6pm.

A dance-a-thon involving the entire school is also planned with the celebrations culminating with a concert at Privett Church on July 4.

The celebrations are two-fold as the school wants to raise money to replace the aging yurt in its grounds with a new performing arts studio.

The studio will be built by designers and local company, Natural Vista Studios, if everything goes to plan.