Pupils excel in cash effort

11:26am Thursday 8th May 2008

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Children at Cullingworth Primary School were given a new monetary incentive to do well in maths.

The four to 11-year-olds were sponsored for every correct answer they achieved in a times table test. The cash will go towards caring for abused or neglected children.

Sarah Tarpey, the NSPCC schools organiser for West Yorkshire, said that the money Cullingworth had raised for the charity put it head and shoulders above the rest.

She said: "I have done this exercise in a few schools and this one has really stood out. It has raised far more than what we would usually expect schools to raise.

"It is important that children know what they are raising money for and I told them about a real case study of a child in the local area who had been abused. It helps to open up the conversation about general child protection issues, which it is important for them as children to know about, but it also empowers children to do something about it.

"Raising this money has given them a real sense of value, especially when I told them that it costs £1,500 to train a specialist to work on ChildLine."

Parents and family friends sponsored the children to achieve a certain number of points or correct answers on their maths test. Head teacher John Corn said he was proud of the pupils' academic efforts for a good cause.