St Edward's School in Cheltenham has been awarded the highest honour from High Performance Learning.

After an accreditation visit from the team of inspectors at High Performance Learning, the school has been awarded a HPL World Class Award.

High Performance Learning is an educational philosophy based on the research and work of Professor Deborah Eyre, whose approach is the "passionate belief that every single child can achieve academic success and live a life full of opportunity and fulfilment, regardless of their starting point."

Following many years of research into how people think and learn, what was always perceived as impossible is now possible: there are no restrictions on learning.

In practice, what this requires is schools like St Edward's to seek to remove the barriers to achievement and enter the process of reimagining education for a new world with a rigorous, systematic and holistic approach to teaching and learning that empowers every child.

Matthew Burke, headmaster of St Edward's, said: "We are so proud of this award, as it is a recognition of the outstanding educational experience we are providing all of the children and students who attend St Edward's, from those in nursery to those in our sixth form.

"The award is further proof of the strides our community has taken in recent years and an external validation on the positive ethos and approach that the school takes, both with its staff and students, reflecting on the comments as experiences of our children, students, staff and parents - we will certainly enjoy this moment."

The report itself said: "St Edward's places each individual student at the heart of its practice. The adoption of HPL is now schoolwide and the aspirations teachers have for their students is noticeably high."

The report continued: "Well-being and achieving an appropriate academic, social, enrichment learning balance is very noticeable and has been exemplified in conversations with pupils, parents, and teachers."

It concluded: "The time the headmaster dedicates to meeting with each pupil and his/ her family every year, in addition to normal parent conferences and school events, is testimony to that commitment to personalise the learning experience of every child. Students speak highly and affectionately about their teachers.

"The respect and enthusiasm for the opportunities on offer reflect the family atmosphere that is fostered across the school. Students of all ages feel comfortable living, working and learning alongside each other. The school can be rightly proud of this success. Students cannot fail to succeed in such an environment."

Deborah Eyre said: "When ambitious school leaders, such as Matthew Burke, work with us to harness our philosophy of empowerment - driven by what we know about how children learn - they create world class schools and equip each child with advanced cognitive skills and the essential values, attitudes and attributes that they will need for lifelong success and we are delighted that St Edward's is now a significant part of our elite Fellowship of HPL World Class Schools."