AN ambitious plan to make sure every Worcestershire pupil is healthy, safe and enjoys their time at school has been drawn up the county council.

As revealed in the Worcester News last month, more than 5,000 children, as well as the police, youth services, and other private and voluntary organisations, were asked to contribute ideas to the far-reaching review of education in the county.

Liz Eyre, the councillor in charge of children and young people, was excited about the proposed changes.

She said: "This plan is about our ambition for children across Worcestershire and how everyone works together to give them the best possible start in life.

"It covers the most vulnerable young people to the most secure, the most able and gifted, to those who find learning challenging.

"We aim to become world leaders in this area and do the ordinary extraordinarily well and the difficult brilliantly.

"We have spoken to children and families and those who work with them to identify the big issues we need to tackle first.

"Although health, safety and economic well-being might not be seen to link in with education, they do.

"Achievement is the key. You don't achieve if you haven't had a good breakfast, or if you have been up half the night watching videos, or are having problems at home.

"We are not looking for schools to become parents - what we are looking for is to help communities to build up partnerships that will make a real change."

The plan is now being looked at by 4,000 different groups of people, from parents and teachers to parish councils and youth groups in a wide-reaching consultation exercise that is due to last until the end of July.

A final plan will be put before Worcestershire County Council's cabinet in September, and put into practice soon afterwards.