Prime minister's praise for three South Lakeland headteachers (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Prime minister's praise for three South Lakeland headteachers

4:41pm Tuesday 19th January 2010 in

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THREE South Lakeland headteachers have been recognised by the Prime Minister for their work in making their schools some of the most improved in the country.

The head teachers of Goodly Dale Primary School in Windermere, St Thomas’s C of E in Kendal, and Cartmel Priory C of E Secondary School at Cartmel, were congratulated by Gordon Brown and his wife Sarah for their sucess at a Downing Street reception in London last week.

While praising the schools for their commitment to education Mr Brown commented: “These head teachers have been pivotal to driving up standards and fostering a positive environment for learning in their schools, often in challenging circumstances.

They represent the crème de la crème of head teachers and are a real credit to their schools and the local communities they serve.”

Cartmel Priory - Cumbria’s highest performing school in 2008 and the winner of three national awards for its achievements - has improved dramatically since head teacher Paul Williams took over three years ago.

Mr Williams said: “I was very pleased that our school had been recognised. One thing Mr Brown said to us on the night that I thought was pertinent, was that while thousands of pounds can be spent on buildings, sucess is down to the actions and kindness of staff who build up relations with pupils.

"There’s been no secret formula for the sucess we have had at our school, just hard work from teachers, staff, parents and children.”

Headteacher of Goodly Dale primary school, Maggie Cole, spoke of her appreciation for her staff in making the school such a sucess.

She said: “It really has been a great accolade for the school. We’ve always done reasonably well but over the past few years we’ve made huge strides, particularly in science and that’s down to great teaching in year 6 and across all the key stage areas.”

Mrs Cole said she also spent time chatting with Sarah Brown and Children’s secretary Ed Balls, and had her photo taken knocking on the door of Number 10 with head teacher Paul Brown of St Thomas’s.

“It was a fantastic experience and quite out of the blue to be invited to Downing Street by the PM, and to be there with two other Cumbrian schools made it even more special,” she added.