SCHOOL children from around the North-East have been getting into the groove at their very own version of the Eurovision song contest.

The Song for Europe competition, held in Durham, asked nine and ten-year-olds to sing a song in a language other than English.

The competition, held in Durham County Council’s Gala Theatre, included performances in Irish Gaelic, Welsh, Romanian and Swedish

It was won by Kings Priory School, in Tynemouth, who sang Adios Mama in Spanish, with St Margaret’s CE Primary School, Durham, in second with their German version of Hi Ho.

The purpose of the day is to promote the learning of other tongues and to showcase pupils’ abilities to master often challenging languages.

Brian Stobie, the council’s international officer, said: “I was blown away by the ability of all who performed to master such challenging languages.

“Added to the amazing atmosphere and the camaraderie shown between all performers, this made for a very special day, and hopefully one all involved will remember for years to come.”

All in all, pupils from 30 different North-East schools strutted their stuff at the event, which is run by Europe Direct North East England, and hosted by Durham County Council.