AN outside courtyard could become a stage for primary school pupils at a Worcester school.

Stanley Road Primary School have plans to build on their arts facilities - and want Worcester News readers to help.

The school is one of 30 South Worcestershire schools shortlisted for the Cash for Schools competition we are running in conjunction with Western Power Distribution.

The schools will win a share of the £25,000 prize but how much depends on how many tokens they can collect from the paper.

Rick Duerden, year 5/6 phase leader, said: "At Stanley Road Primary School children are encouraged to deepen their thinking and develop their independence, as well as develop their confidence through the arts.

"Currently the courtyard, which can be accessed by all the children in the school, is undergoing a facelift to make sure it is used to support a range of learning opportunities.

"Although staff, children and volunteers have been helping to tidy up the area, winning the money would allow us to fully develop our ideas and build an outdoor stage for the children to use to rehearse and perform.

"A purpose built outdoor stage with an all weather cover would provide children with an additional space to develop and refine their performance skills whilst continuing their cross curricular learning.

"We believe that having the confidence to speak and perform in public is a key skill and we want to ensure all of our children have the opportunity to practise and perform to a range of audiences in all weathers."

The school's latest plans are part of a wider focus on arts for its pupils.

Mr Duerden said: "We are a school which support children to develop in every area of the curriculum, and the arts forms a large part of this.

"The school has gained the Artsmark gold award four times, and is one of only seven primary schools in the whole of the West Midlands to achieve this, and the only primary school in Worcestershire to do so."

Voting tokens will be printed in the paper until this Saturday.

You may vote for as many schools and as many times as you wish.