YOUNG children have gone right to the top in their bid to get free fruit at school to stop them getting fat.

Health Minister Melanie Johnson was today considering written requests from pupils at Accrington's Peel Park Primary School to extend a national scheme to older pupils.

Dozens of youngsters wrote to Hyndburn MP Greg Pope asking that the scheme that gave them apples, bananas and other healthy fruit be extended from five to seven year olds to eight-11 year olds.

Now he has passed their pleas on to Mrs Johnson, urging the government to back the pupils' plea.

Alan Henderson, deputy head at Peel Park, said the idea to write letters came from the children themselves. He said: "The letters were part of the literacy hour. We were doing some work on persuasive writing, putting forward arguments."

Mr Pope said: "This is a really good idea and Peel Park pupils are absolutely right.

"If the government is serious about tackling obesity and promoting healthy eating among youngsters then it will snap up this idea."

One of the pupils, Kara Culshaw, 11, told Mr Pope in a letter: "Key Stage 1 pupils have had fruit for more than a year.

"The teachers have reported the children have been more alert and they are finding it helps us to work and concentrate.

"You expect children to have a healthy diet, but many choose to eat fast foods. Surely it would be better to encourage them to eat more healthily by providing fruit every day.

"Please give Key Stage 2 more fruit."

A spokesman for Mrs Johnson said: "The programme was introduced to target younger children who we felt most needed the free fruit.

"We have no plans at the moment to extend the scheme, but obviously the minister will be very interested to read the representations from Mr Pope and his young constituents."