The school's new farm is using the old technology of the plough and horse as part of their Outdoor Classrooms programme.

The horses ; Murphy, 18, and Nathan, 9 ; and their handlers Peter and Carol Coates enthralled 300 children who were presented with a scene from yesteryear as the horses slowly turned the soil.

Richard Kirkby, a parent who is a co-ordinator of the programme, he said: "Ploughing with horses has always been an ambition of mine.

"We found a plough last year at a farm sale after the death of Rodley farmer Leonard Sharpe and we managed to buy it with sponsorship from the local Rotary Club."

However, on finding it was designed for rhubarb cultivation, the search for another plough began.

By chance Richard spotted another plough in a Calverley garden and asked retired ploughman Morris Jefferson to come out and take a look at it.

He helped coax it to life and the assembled crowd were treated to the spectacle of farming with horse power.

Richard's wife Gina, groundswoman at the school, said: "The whole day was overwhelming and a complete success in every way. Even though I have ploughed with a pony before, I learned so much form the ploughing team, and the children loved it!"

Lydia Fensome, a teacher at Farfield for 30 years, was eager to turn her hand to ploughing. She was brought up in a farming family, and has seen both her father and grandfather working the land with horses.

"I haven't enjoyed anything as much as that for a long time, " said Mrs Fensome.