A Letchworth school welcomed Sir Oliver Heald MP last week to celebrate the success of its creative curriculum.

Pupils from Pixmore Junior School took the opportunity on Friday to share their work, perform and discuss recent achievements with the MP for North East Herts.

Last year, the school was awarded the Silver Arts Mark Award for using drama, spoken word and dance in a cross curricular way to engage pupils, demonstrating a commitment to all forms of the arts.

Another of the school's successes has been the development of the Stevenage and North Herts Writing Project, by Deputy Head Sarah Inman - a project inspired by the wordless picture book 'Flotsam' by David Wiesner.

The project has involved ten local schools and aims to immerse children in a text using a range of creative techniques including drama, art, and spoken word.

Pupils who attended the awards evening on February 7, gave Sir Oliver a tour of the work on display, and discussed the success of the project.

The school choir - who will be participating in the 'A Voice in a Million' concert at Wembley Arena on March 17 - also impressed Sir Oliver with a medley of songs they will be performing next week.

Kath West, Pixmore's chair of governors, said: "It was such a pleasure to be able to show off the achievements and successes of our pupils, and a delight to see how confidently they performed during Sir Oliver's visit."

Sir Oliver Heald MP paid tribute to the pupils, adding: "It was a pleasure to see the work the children have done. The writing project has obviously increased the vocabulary of the children and engaged their learning. It will clearly have an impact on reading and writing for the children."