A NEW arts company could be formed from pupils at Our Lady and St John RC High School, it was revealed.

Headteacher of the Blackburn school, Collette Gillen, announced the move at the annual prize-giving and asked students to come forward as would-be founder members.

The school was the first in Blackburn with Darwen to be awarded Leading Edge status after growing in strength on the stage. Forming an OLSJ Youth Arts Company would "encompass" all of the progress in the arts field, said Mrs Gillen.

"We became an arts college in September last year and this cohort of pupils is the first to leave us since we acquired the status and they are a year group with outstanding talent."

Pupils were praised for their success on a number of stages - art, music, film and dance students helped out at summer school, two students gained places at Winstons Stage School, in Blackpool, and Sammy Allen became the youngest member of Ludus Dance Company who will now work with Filip Van Huffel, of the Belgium Retina Dance Company.

They were also rewarded for record-breaking academic success.

Double the number of top grades were gained by pupils with a 210 total. And for the first time ever, boys outstripped the girls in GCSE grades by 44 per cent compared to 43 per cent, gaining five or more grades.

Duke of Edinburgh students were also praised after there were 27 participants in the Bronze Award - the most from any establishment in Blackburn with Darwen.

Mrs Gillen said: "I think that these achievements are a great testimony to our mission as a Catholic school.

"Academic achievement is of course very important but our aim is to develop the whole child to nurture and develop their individual gifts and to give our youngsters skills for life and for life-long learning."