minister backsstatus battle
Children's Secretary Ed Balls threw his support behind the plan for a state-funded cathedral choir school in Leeds during a visit to the city yesterday.
The Normanton MP was invited to Holy Rosary and St Anne’s by the Bishop of Leeds, Arthur Roche and Leeds North-East MP Fabian Hamilton, as a drive to raise money for the project began.
“It was truly a fantastic experience,” he said. “The choir – the first of its type in the whole country – performed fabulously and I was impressed by the obvious pleasure and joy the children get out of their singing, inspired by their brilliant teachers.
“The children told me that singing gave them confidence, helped them learn new languages and inspired them to get on better in all their other subjects.”