A group of talented girls from Bryn Hafren Comprehensive School in Barry have shown that they are streets ahead of the rest by winning the Welsh Inter High School Street Dance Championships.

The dance crew of 10 girls won the category for lower school pupils (year 7, 8 and 9) after out-performing 31 other schools from across Wales in the competition at St David’s Hall in Cardiff.

After dazzling the judges with a routine they had created themselves, the girls won a huge trophy. A further Vale of Glamorgan school had reason to be proud at the final as pupils from St Richard Gwyn RC High in Barry were placed fifth. Although they were beaten by their local rivals from Bryn Hafren, it was still a tremendous achievement.

The dancers from both schools perfected their moves during after-school sessions as part of the Vale of Glamorgan Council’s 5x60 sporting initiative.

Creating opportunities for extra-curricular sporting and physical activities, the national 5x60 scheme encourages secondary school pupils to exercise for at least 60 minutes on five days of the week. The Welsh Assembly Government-funded initiative is run by the Sports Council for Wales and is supported locally by the Vale Council’s sports and play development team.

Elaborating on the scheme, Chair of the Sports Council for Wales Philip Carling said: "The underlying goal is to encourage those who do not take part in sport to get active. When pupils are reluctant to take part, 5x60 officers are on hand to listen to concerns and to help overcome any hurdles."

Street dance is one of the many 5x60 activities that have taken Bryn Hafren by storm after being introduced by the school’s 5x60 officer Michelle Davies. The victory capped a glorious month for Michelle after her efforts at both Bryn Hafren and Cowbridge Comprehensive School saw her named the national ‘5x60 officer of the month’ for January.

Michelle said: "I am so proud of the girls. They worked extremely hard on the dance and deserved to be in the final. The organisers were impressed with the standard of all the schools and could not believe that the girls had produced the dance themselves. Well done girls! We are now looking forward to retaining our title next year!"

The ten girls celebrating their victory are Bethan Thorngate, Vicky Howells, Cerys Tanner, Elise Tyler, Kim Evans, Amber Summers, Nioami Everitt, Charliese Ludvigsen, Georgia Knight and Lauren Davies.

Delighted with the school’s dancing success, Bryn Hafren’s head teacher Mr Whitcombe said: "I am absolutely delighted. This has only been achieved as a result of the hard work from the pupils and the support of Michelle, who has worked closely with the girls. Sporting activity has greatly increased as a result of the 5x60 initiative and this fantastic victory would not have been possible without Michelle."

Equally elated, the school’s head of PE, Miss Williams, said: "I am so proud of the pupils who took part in the competition. Everyone has embraced the 5x60 initiative and the PE department has moved from strength to strength. Michelle has worked extremely hard and I look forward to seeing even more pupils get involved with the 5x60 programme of activities."