STUDENTS at Stourport High School have volunteered to swap their exercise books for a marker pen to act as "shadow" judges for a national competition.

Fourteen year 10 pupils will read and discuss the work of authors who have submitted books for the Carnegie Medal for Literature Award.

Lee Birch, Shelley Franklin, Laura Hogan, David Ireland, Warren Jennings, Craig Johnstone, Amy Jones, Jemma Lewis, Melissa Pearson, Joanne Poole, Alex Shore, Sarah Taylor, Becki Tyrrell and Tenaya Webb will assess criteria similar to those of the judges to pick a winner.

Library co-ordinator Sue Ward said the project, organised by the Library Association, would run over several weeks and was a great idea.

She added: "This is a great way to help students to think about how authors work and how readers respond to different authors, as well as having a lot of fun."