BRAVE David Parish has been honoured by the High Sheriff of Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

Andrew Dyson Perrins presented him with the Jeremy Cooper Memorial Cup at the annual prizegiving ceremony at Dyson Perrins High School last Friday (December 7).

The 12-year-old received the award, traditionally given to the pupil who brings most distinction to the school, in recognition of his efforts raising funds for cancer research.

He raised £200 for the charity by organising a disco in September.

"I'm very, very proud of him," said his mum Jane Wood. "I've spent the last two-and-a-half years suffering from cancer and I'm so proud to see my own son, at the age of 12, going out and fundraising like that.

"I'm very, very pleased with him and so are his grandparents. He's a credit to his whole family."

Over 100 other prizes were presented at the ceremony.

Among them, Joanna Talbot, who left the school in summer after completing her A'Levels, was awarded the Isobel Harrison prize for school service in recognition of her activities in music, drama and on the charity committee.

The C W Dyson Perrins Awards for outstanding artwork was won by Lana Woroniecki, of Year 8, in the junior category. Year 13 student Laura Scurlock won the seniors' prize.

In his traditional speech for the ceremony, headteacher Peter Buchanan said that despite the school being set "more targets than an archery competition" he expected it to exceed them in the forthcoming year.

He went on to praise high achievers in the school, one of whom had managed seven A*s and four As in last year's GCSE exams.

"I believe that the criteria for the National Schools Achievement Awards are fundamentally flawed but I'm not surprised we got one," he said.

Mr Buchanan closed his speech by urging people to write to their MP or the Prime Minister to ask for more funding for Worcestershire's schools.

"They need to know we will go on fighting until we get a fair deal," he concluded. "Our children deserve it."