Hordes of pupils descended on Kingston schools to begin the new term last week, with the council’s efforts to provide a place for every child holding firm under the pressure.

More than 1,800 reception class children took their first tentative steps on the long road of education, although a shortfall of almost 300 places meant the council was forced to set up 10 temporary classrooms throughout the borough to cope with the surge in numbers.

Although six children remain without a reception place, a council spokesman said this was because they refused one of the 55 spots which were available in nine schools across the borough.

One in seven children failed to get into their top choice of school, but 99 per cent of pupils gained one of their top three choices.

The borough needs to build two new primary schools and expand six others by September 2012 to cope with rising pupil numbers, at the cost of £20m - money the council hopes it will secure from the Government.

None of this mattered to pupils at St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School in Kingston, however, as the children celebrated being awarded Full International School status by the British Council for their investigations into other cultures.

In June, the whole school went “round the world in 60 minutes”, with each class displaying artefacts and information on a particular country.

Even Prime Minister Gordon Brown got in on the act by replying to pupils’ letters about their campaign to Stand up to Poverty, part of which saw them collecting toys and gifts to send to other countries in their Christmas shoebox appeal.

For all your schools stories, visit surreycomet.co.uk/education