Staff and pupils at Priory Junior School in St Neots are celebrating after achieving a gold standard award for their commitment to physical education.

The school is one of only 120 schools in the country to have achieved the Gold School Games mark for the last five years and has now been invited to apply for the inaugural platinum award in a letter from the Department for Education.

The letter from the DfE recognises the school’s “continued commitment and dedication” to providing a wide breadth of sports and opportunities.

The government’s Childhood Obesity Plan, published last August, made it clear that physical activity and sport have an important role in maintaining and improving the health and wellbeing of children and young people, irrespective of their weight.

The letter continued; “Because of your continued drive and enthusiasm we can sustain this positive impact that sport and physical activity have on children and young people and their health and wellbeing and we thank you for this.”

PE teacher Liam Smith told The Hunts Post; “At Priory we have endeavoured to ensure that sport is a key and celebrated part of everyday school life for many years. We believe that sport builds the confidence of children both in and out of the classroom and gives them a strong sense of pride and achievement. It also helps them to understand the importance of living a healthy lifestyle as well as finding enthusiasm for sports and activities that they wouldn’t otherwise engage in.”