TWINS Grace and Bethan Davies will be following in their family's footsteps when they start at Haywood Engineering College in September.

The 11-year-old sisters have already seen older brother Thomas excel at the Burslem school and he is due to take his GCSEs there this summer.

Their mother Emma Davies, from Stanfields, said: "I went there as a child as well. The school has a great reputation and really reaches out to the community. When it was facing closure, the community rallied round to save it. It showed the success of people power.

"My daughters can't wait to join Haywood and go to the different clubs and activities."

Emma describes the row over funding for Haywood's building improvements as "crazy".

She said: "The school needs the money. You feel your money as a taxpayer should go towards your children's future."

Kenneth Fone, who lives in Tunstall and works as a nurse, is also preparing to send his 10-year-old daughter Katie to Haywood in the autumn.

The 41-year-old said: "We looked at several schools, but Haywood was head and shoulders above the rest. It doesn't surprise me it's oversubscribed.

"Katie is in the top tier at primary school and we wanted a secondary school which would challenge her. From an educational point of view, we felt Haywood had more to offer."