A SIMPLE school maintenance project unearthed a 1902 medal.

When class teacher Robin Dalton repositioned a bench at Freshwaters Primary Academy, in Harlow, he dug six 20cm deep holes in the ground.

During the work, he came across a mud-encrusted piece of metal which came out of the ground on his spade.

On closer inspection, he discovered he had found a King Edward VII school attendance medal from 1902, awarded to an unidentified pupil in the school year 1907/1908.

Mr Dalton said: “To have found something more than 100 years old like this was very interesting, since it must have been undiscovered in the ground for several decades.”

Year 6 pupil Daniela said: “Whoa, that’s 100 years old and it’s in our school!”