Hornsey headteacher honoured at Downing Street reception (From This Is Local London)

Hornsey headteacher honoured at Downing Street reception

8:00am Tuesday 12th January 2010 in

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A HORNSEY headteacher has been honoured by Prime Minister Gordon Brown at Downing Street for transforming his school into one of the most improved in the country.

Greig City Academy principal Paul Sutton was among a select group of headteachers of secondary and primary schools across the country to celebrate the difference their hard work has made in pupils' lives as well as raising academic standards.

Mr Sutton joined the academy, formerly St David and St Katherine, in September 2004 and under his management has continued to steadily improve.

An Ofsted inspection in March 2009 declared Greig City, in High Street, Hornsey, a "good school" with outstanding features within its sixth form. A subject inspection found the reaching of business education to be 'outstanding'.

Mr Sutton said: "We know the improvements we have put in place for our pupils are effectively raising standards at the school. It is genuinely pleasing that this team effort by the whole school community has been recognised in this way.

"I am fortunate that I have a dedicated team of staff who work extremely hard to help the students at the school achieve their best."

In 2005, just 10 per cent of pupils were achieving five or more GCSEs at top grades A* - C when maths and English were taken into consideration. It has steadily increased year on year, and can now boast a figure of 40 per cent.

The figure represents an increase of 30 percentage points under the leadership of Mr Sutton.

Yesterday the PM's wife, Sarah Brown, posted on Twitter: "Just attended reception for many of the top headteachers from around the UK - inspirational leaders all of them and no fear of the snow!"

The remarkable principal was paralysed in 2005 after suffering a spinal injury while playing rugby.

And despite contracting the MRSA virus twice during his sixteen-month recuperation, he returned to the helm the following year.

Mr Sutton also acted as a pillar of strength to former headboy Damilola Ajagbonna, 21, who fought a fierce battle to stay in the UK after it emerged he arrived just days short of the time required to be considered a British citizen.

The Nigerian-born student arrived in the UK in 1999, aged 11, to live with his uncle and aunt after his mother, who suffers from sickle cell anaemia, became too ill to care for him.

The star pupil had become the first Greig City pupil to be offered a place at Cambridge University after achieving 13 top GCSEs and three A-levels.