A ST Annes stage school has reached its own millennium a few months ahead of the big event.

The 1,000th pupil has just enrolled at the St Annes School of Music, Drama and Dance on Victoria Road, only three years after it opened.

Nine-year-old Natalie Lealand was the lucky pupil and she was presented with a huge bouquet and gift vouchers by school principal Mandy Butterworth last week.

Natalie, who attends the nearby St Thomas's County Primary School, joined the school to study the violin with Mandy.

Commenting on the astonishing success of the school, Mandy said: "I never thought it would grow to this extent when we opened. But I knew we must have been approaching our own millennium and it was the computer which flagged up Natalie as our 1000th pupil.

"We opened in September, 1996, with less than 50 music pupils. Since then we have built a 50ft by 30ft dance studio and also added drama tuition.

"Our two newest classes, a Tuesday evening salsa course and our Saturday afternoon stage arts workshop for youngsters, are already among our busiest classes."

The handsome old building, previously a vicarage, was decaying when it was purchased by Mandy and her husband Ray, a paving contractor.

Today the school has 24 teachers and they are currently looking forward to their production of the musical Bugsy Malone at the Lowther Pavilion on December 10 and 11.

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