A PLAYGROUND at a primary school in Swindon has been dedicated to the ‘beautiful life’ of a former pupil who died in a car crash in 2008.

Seven-year-old Tyrese Hannah was knocked down by a car on March 14, 2008 while walking along Drove Road with his mother Caroline and their dog, Odi.

On Monday Miss Hannah, 36, of Old Walcot, handed over a plaque to Tyrese’s former school, Lethbridge Primary School, to be installed next to a playground there.

The inscription reads: “To the memory of a beautiful life. May all who play here remember him and send him a smile.”

The school installed £6,000 of play equipment in memory of Tyrese in 2008 and have now added another £5,500 worth of equipment to it.

After cutting a ribbon to open the new section of the playground, Miss Hannah looked on as Tyrese’s former classmates, who are now in Year 4, climbed over the equipment.

She said: “I think it is a very fitting tribute.

“All the other children can enjoy it and remember Tyrese.”

Headteacher Ray Norman described Tyrese as a very active boy who was always running around the playground.

“When we opened this we thought it was a nice thing that he would have enjoyed using in the playground.

“So what better way to remember him than to give successive generations of pupils something to use in the playground?”

Joanne Buck, Tyrese’s former teacher, said they had tried to highlight the road safety message even more since Tyrese’s death.

“We had an assembly where they told everybody what had happened and we let the children absorb it all really,” she said.

“All the teachers in school were aware and were extra sensitive and the children’s parents had a big input and helped them understand what had happened.

“We were always open about talking about him and it has brought home the road safety message to the children.”

Miss Hannah will be working with the road safety charity Brake later this year when she will be giving talks and Tyrese’s image will be used on posters promoting road safety to school children.

She says she is also planning on planting a cherry tree in the grounds of Lethbridge Primary School in memory of her son.

Motorist Sean Austin, 20, who had been travelling at between 45-50mph in a 30mph zone when his car mounted the pavement in Drove Road and struck Tyrese, was jailed for three years in August last year.