A St Albans based stage school has awarded six lucky children scholarships worth £900.

Top Hat Stage School based in St Albans Girls School and Roundword Park School, Harpenden, handed out a total £5,400 worth of scholarships - out of a total of £16,000 worth of scholarships to Hertfordshire children overall.

The Mayor of St Albans, Annie Brewster, and Deputy Mayor Brian Gibbard presented the talented children from St Albans and Harpenden with their prestigious prizes.

The city’s mayor said: "These Top Hat scholarships are an excellent way to give opportunities to those who otherwise would not be able to uncover their performing arts potential."

More than 200 children from across Hertfordshire auditioned to win a free place to attend a Top Hat school for the whole of 2014 back in November.

The lucky winners in St Albans are Scarlett Swainsbury, 6, Alice Walsh, 8, Kai Richards, 9 and Cameron Burnett, 13.

In Harpenden the lucky winners are Maddie Clark, 8, Lily Shapter, 6, Nevan Masterson, 11, Lisa Dixon, 11, Matt Swan, 13 and Rose Utpon-Creed, 12.

Principal Warren Bacci said: "We started our scholarship programme to give children with talent, whose families can’t afford for them to attend a part-time stage school, the opportunity to get involved in performing.

"It was such a delight to meet so much undiscovered talent in St Albans and Harpenden and a bonus that this year's winners will get to perform on a west end stage in the summer."