First entry for gifted pupils' academy

Bright children will spend three weeks at Warwick

The National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth has accepted its first intake for a pilot summer school.

The summer school, to be held at the University of Warwick at the end of this month, will provide intensive extra lessons for 100 secondary school students.

This is the latest step in the recognition that very able pupils have particular needs - and that it should not only be the least able who need special help.

Deborah Eyre is to be the first director of the academy

These pupils are drawn from the top 5% of the ability range - and will spend three weeks in lessons designed to challenge the brightest young minds.

These courses will allow gifted children to study at a higher level than is usually possible in school.

There will be structured lessons and study for about six or seven days - and there will be social activities, which will allow the pupils to spend time with other gifted youngsters.

There were 520 applications for the first summer school - with most of the places allocated on the strength of teachers' recommendations and test results.

Sponsorship

The successful students are almost equally divided between male and female - and about a quarter of the students are non-white.

The largest number of pupils attending the summer school are aged 14 and 15 - and 85% are from state schools.

The largest concentrations of these bright children are in Luton and Merseyside - which between them will be sending 10 pupils.

Next year the academy wants to run a scheme for 900 gifted pupils. There will also be fees charged from next year, but the academy is hoping to raise sponsorship to cover the costs of less well-off applicants.

The academy's director will be Professor Deborah Eyre, currently the deputy head of the Westminster Institute of Education at Oxford Brookes University and Director of its Research Centre for Able Pupils.