Bethany Edmondson, who came first out of 460 entries in the Northern Pen Show competition, was one of several Key Stage Two pupils, aged eight to 11, from the school to receive prizes after samples of their handwriting were judged by the Eden Society of Scribes.

Bethany went to a ceremony in Lancashire to receive her prize, a pen worth more than £150, while Terry Crellin from the Northern Pen Show visited the school to give other pupils their certificates.

'dying art'

Headteacher David Roberts said it was the second year the school had entered pupils' work into the competition.

"Handwriting is a bit of a dying art and we want to encourage the children to take pride in the presentation of their work," he said.

"In this age of computers and word-processed documents, we want them to realise that they can still create a good impression of themselves through their handwriting."