A SCHOOL in Wotton-under-Edge has been awarded for its efforts to promote Chinese culture.

Katharine Lady Berkeley's (KLB) School has become one of the world's first Confucius Classrooms.

This status gives the school official approval from the Office of Chinese Language Council (Hanban) and the Specialist Schools Trust to support other schools in the teaching and learning of the Chinese language and culture.

KLB is just one of five schools in the country to be chosen by the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust.

Confucius Institutes are being established globally by Hanban with a mission to help the world understand Chinese language and culture and promote friendly relationships between China and the world.

Andrew Harris, headteacher at Katharine Lady Berkeley's School, said: "At Katharine Lady Berkeley's School, we have been teaching Chinese since 1996.

"The invitation to become the Confucius Classroom for the South West of England will build on our continuing enthusiasm for and commitment to Chinese Language education and enable us to play a key role in moving Chinese into the mainstream curriculum for many more pupils and students.

"We are genuinely excited about working with a network of schools in South West to develop Chinese in the secondary and primary sectors which will, in the future, ensure that increasing numbers of young people can take up positions in commerce and industry with an understanding of Chinese culture and skills in this important language."

KLB was chosen along with four other British schools to operate as hubs within a network of schools wanting to begin or expand their teaching of Chinese.

The other UK schools involved are, Calday Grange Grammar School in Merseyside, Djanogly City Academy in Nottingham, Hummersknott School and Language College in County Durham and Kingsford Community School in East London.

For more information visit, www.ssatrust.org.uk