Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond has launched his own company with a deal to make a £2m BBC children's science series with another independent producer.

The 26-part gameshow, Richard Hammond's Lab Rats, which will air on BBC1 and the CBBC channel next year, will be set in a "surreal and fictional" underground laboratory with each episode featuring two teams of children carrying out a series of experiments and challenges.

The show will be produced by September Films, which is owned by DCD Media, in association with Hammond's new independent production company Hamster's Wheel.

Lab Rats will be the first children's show fronted by Hammond, who as well as hosting Top Gear and presenting other BBC shows has fronted the first four series of Sky One's science show Brainiac.

September Films' Peter Wyles, who devised the format, said the idea came about because of Hammond's passion for getting young people involved in science.

"Richard is the perfect person to host this series - he lives and breathes the world of popular science," Wyles said.

"As parents ourselves, we are both incredibly keen to make science entertaining and engaging for a new generation."

September Films said Hammond had been "heavily involved" in the development of the series alongside Wyles and the firm's creative director of factual, Sheldon Lazarus.

The show was commissioned by the CBBC controller, Anne Gilchrist, and will be executive produced by Wyles and Lazarus, for September Films, and Tanya Motie for CBBC.

This is the second major BBC commission this year for September Films, following the four-part Alan Whicker's Journey of a Lifetime for BBC2.

· To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email editor@mediatheguardian.com or phone 020 7239 9857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 7278 2332.

· If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".