GAZETTE & HERALD: WATERWISE kids can win themselves a certificate in a new Internet game being launched at a Corsham primary school.

The Water Family is an online, interactive game for children aged eight to 11 where players score points for being water conscious.

Cath Nicholls education adviser from Wessex Water, who devised the website, showed pupils at St Patrick's School how to use the game on Friday.

The website asks youngsters to think about how they and their families use water and what they could do to save the precious resource.

The game has been designed for children to use at home, where they may persuade the rest of their family to cut out bad water habits, such as washing up under a running tap or using a sprinkler in the garden.

Ms Nicholls said: "Not only is this game fun for children to use, it is also a valuable education tool. Schools can use it to teach both IT skills and the importance of conserving water and can challenge pupils to find out who is the top water saver in their school."

After logging on to the site players choose their virtual family and then travel through a house where they identify where they can save water and score points by being waterwise.

The game finishes with an Ask the Family quiz and a downloadable certificate with the player's score.

Deputy headteacher at St Patrick's School, Rita McLoughlin said: "The children thoroughly enjoyed investigating water conservation with Wessex Water. They enjoyed the fun graphics on the Water Family website and the opportunity to play Water Detective.

"More importantly, they have learnt many new ways to be responsible using water at home."

To play The Water Family, log on to www.thewaterfamily.co.uk.