Praise for Wick pupils who never missed a day

Before the school bell rang for the last time, signalling the start of the summer holidays, children at White Meadows Primary School gathered to celebrate the achievements of a select few, who over the past year have not missed a single day of school.

A total of 21 pupils this year achieved a 100 per cent attendance record, with a further eight managing to earn an impressive two years of full attendance.

And to mark the achievements of these pupils, staff held a lucky dip lottery on the last day of term, last Wednesday (July 24), which saw each child in with the chance to win a special prize.

Deputy head teacher Ricky Leigh, admitted there was a tangible level of suspense and anticipation among the pupils who had been entered into the prize draw.

“The children all stood up and you could tell they were really excited especially when they knew that they were in with a chance to win a prize,” he said.

The youngsters were spilt into four categories – pupils from foundations years, those in key stage one, key stage two who had achieved 100 per cent over the year and then the children who had achieved full attendance over two years.

Elise Etherington, five, and Ellis English, six, won the foundation and key stage one prize. Each received a £20 gift voucher to spend at Pizza Express.

Emily Haines, 10, was the overall winner of the key stage two category, winning a digital camera, while year-five’s Robbie Kerr, 10, won an eight-gigabyte Versus Touchpad 7, worth £75.

Mr Leigh added it was a great way to reward of pupils and to encourage others to strive for better attendance.