THE days of teachers ticking off pupils in an old register book are gone forever at Darwen Vale High School. Now the youngsters are being 'logged' on a computer in a bid to improve attendance.

The scheme at Darwen Vale is the first at any school in the borough and has been introduced thanks to a £40,295 grant from the Department of Education and Employment.

The money is also paying for an in-school centre for pupils who need extra help with their studies, as part of a scheme to get youngsters with learning difficulties into mainstream education.

The moves come as new headteacher Lynn Dunning is hoping to make the school the centre of the community and build closer relationships with industry.

Pupils will be registered by computer when they arrive at school, as well as before each lesson.

Darwen Vale, which has an attendance record of just under 90 per cent, was chosen ahead of three other high schools in the borough which also bid for the grant.

Mrs Dunning has also vowed to clamp down on pupils who don't wear the correct uniform.

She said: "The pupils have made an excellent start, and they were very well dressed for the first few days back."

She said the school already had a lot of strong points, and hoped the improvement in exam results would continue.

She added that she wants to build on the school's sporting achievements, as well as dance, drama and music.

Mrs Dunning was deputy head at Woodhey High School, Ramsbottom, for 12 years.

She lives in the Darwen area with her husband Brian, a senior school manager who has twice been chosen as the Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Rossendale and Darwen.

She replaced John Strivens, who had been at the school for 11 years. He is taking up a post in Cumbria as a school advisor and inspector.

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