Students from St John's School broadened their knowledge of ceramic design when they visited the Marlborough Tile Factory.

Two groups of children from the Chopping Knife Lane buildings were taken on a tour of the factory on Thursday.

Staff at the Elcot Lane tile works showed the students how tiles were made and decorated.

After being shown around the building, pupils were taken into the design studio where they were given a demonstration on decorative techniques and the finishing processes used in the factory, which exports tiles all over the world.

They were then allowed to exercise their creative talents by reproducing some of the decorative tiles they had been shown and making their own designs.

They used a wide range of paint effects such as sponging and hand painting to produce their designs, said Raymond Hudson, personal assistant to managing director Jamie Robb.

Once the students were satisfied with their work, the tiles were fired in the kiln.

The tiles were ready to be picked up the following day for the students to take home and keep as a reminder of their visit.