AWARD winning Loreto Grammar School science teacher Elaine Manton has picked up another prestigious national accolade.

The latest recognition for the Altrincham teacher is from the British Council for her work engaging students in the STEM subjects.

Elaine was one of 11 national award winners in the British Council's Etwinning awards which are designed to promote a pan European approach to improving teaching by sharing best practice from all cultures.

Elaine said: “It's my name on the award but it's more important that the work of our girls is recognised. Obviously without their dedication, commitment and desire to keeping on learning and breaking new boundaries I would win nothing.”

Elaine added: “What is more it was given in recognition of our collaboration with our Spanish Partner IES David Bujan from La Coruna in Spain, as part of the Erasmus project, which has been vital in promoting STEM, and they deserve as much credit as we do here in Altrincham.”

The teacher won in the Erasmus + and STEM category recognising how her students and those in Spain had engaged with science, technology, engineering and mathematics. It was presented with her award at the 12th annual British Council eTwinning UK conference in Nottingham.

A passionate advocate of developing more and more women for strategic and creative roles in science and industry, Elaine, has helped Loreto Grammar, the Altrincham-based Catholic school, gain TeenTech's Gold level Centre of Innovation and Creativity, one of only six schools nationwide, nominated to disseminate best practice.

Personally she has won the National STEM teacher of the year award and was the only teacher in Europe invited to sit on an influential advisory board in Brussels planning the future STEM subjects across the Continent.

She said: “We need both male and female perspectives in top industrial and scientific roles. We need female creativity just as much as we need male creativity and the different perspectives each brings.”

Elaine added: “Young women are now performing just as well as young men in STEM subjects, but when they get into the working world don't have the belief that those top jobs are for them. That's why at Loreto we use the hash tag “Not just for boys'."