Builders made the walls out of 500 straw bales

The Footprint education base, at St Catherine's, near Windermere, is the first building the National Trust has commissioned made of straw bales.

The �230,000 centre's foundation is being made of recycled tyres and walls of lime, straw and wool.

Throughout July and August the team are running on-site courses on straw wall building and clay and lime plastering.

The centre due to open in October was given planning approval by the Lake District National Park Authority.

It was designed to use natural light and have a low impact on the environment.

Radical approach

Since building work began in April, the trust has run courses on the techniques used such as making foundations from tyres and concrete.

A spokesman for the trust said: "With this project, we want to show that we can be cutting edge and radical in our approach to buildings.

"We are very proud that we are not just making a traditional building of slate and timber."

Roof shingling work at the centre starts in July and will be carried out by volunteers and students.

The building is being constructed by Amazon Nails Straw Bale Builders and was also funded by the Park Authority.