THREE East Lancashire teachers have made history by being among the first in the country to be awarded a new qualification for school support staff.

Gone are the days when volunteer teaching assistants hang round classes helping to keep the odd child under control and carry all the text books.

The Higher Level Teaching Status acknowledges the high degree of support now given by teaching assistants, placing them firmly as an integral part to a lesson along side a teacher.

Nelson-based Julie Green, Lesley Honeymoon working in Barnoldswick, and Clitheroe-based Carol Bear, passed their final exams in January to be awarded the new status in March. They are now recognised to meet national standards of professional knowledge, skills and understanding.

Their classroom presence, it is hoped, will give teachers more time to help pupils and raise standards.

They are among 15 assistants in Lancashire and 56 in the North West to have gained the new status which, according to school standards minister David Miliband, gives them "the recognition they deserve".

Julie Green, 34, of Rowland Avenue, Nelson, works as a HLTA in 300-pupil Castercliffe Community Primary School. The mother-of-two has been working in schools voluntarily for six years before becoming an assistant three years ago and then starting the course.

And she is delighted with the recognition of the work classroom assistants are expected to carry out in schools. But it was tough to achieve. She said: "The HLTA has been incredibly intense because of the time limit of the pilot. The government wanted it assessed and rolled out as soon as possible.

"There are 31 government standards that have to be met and each one has to be evidenced ranging from parent contact to raising standards, behaviour management and equality teaching.

"Everything you do gets scrutinised.

But she added: "My role in school has now been consolidated in school and my status overall has risen.

"Our profile as assistants has been improved and it enables us to do more. Teaching assistants and teachers are more a working partnership than ever before -- a joint force instead of two entities. We have a lot of contact with children and can be there for children if they need a friendly face to talk to."

Lesley works at St Joseph's RC in Barnoldswick and Carol Bear is based at Brookside Primary in Clitheroe.

All three were congratulated at a special ceremony at St Martin's College in Lancaster.