HOW Caple pupil, Honor Letts (14) who attends Malvern College, has been rewarded with a special certificate to mark her achievement in qualifying for the finals of The Cranmer Awards, a national competition which has taken place annually since 1989.

Run by the Prayer Book Society, the contest introduces young people to the 1662 Book of Common Prayer created by Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, during the Reformation.

Finalists are required to memorise and speak by heart their chosen Prayer Book passages in front of an audience of more than 100 comprising parents, teachers, clergy and members of the Prayer Book Society.

This year a record 332 school pupils entered local heats and 26 competed in the finals held at Old Palace in Worcester.

Finalists' certificates were presented by zoologist Phoebe Griffith, winner of the contest's senior first prize at the age of 18 while a pupil at Moreton Hall School in Oswestry. She told them how taking part had provided her with valuable life skills.