A PRIMARY school pupil has reached the finals of a contest to celebrate good communication skills with his joke.

Children at Mill Hill Primary School in Northallerton took part in Voice Box, a joint initiative between the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists and The Communication Trust, to demonstrate the fun and importance of communication.

Year 4 pupil Riley Watson is one of ten regional winners in the contest and will now go through to the national finals on March 29 at Speaker's House in Westminster.

Entries to the contest were organised and judged with students on the school council. Riley won with the joke; ‘How do you get Pikachu onto the bus?... Poke ‘m on!’

Co-headteacher Annie Croft said: "Supporting children with communication needs allows them to engage fully at school and with friends, and play an active role in society. Voice Box has provided a fun way to raise awareness of this important topic. We will be all supporting Riley in the final and wish him lots of luck.”

Richmond MP Rishi Sunak visited the school to congratulate Riley on his success.

He said: "I think Riley's joke is a cracking one. I don't think I'll be able to use it in the House of Commons but my daughters certainly loved it. I very much enjoyed meeting Riley and his classmates at Mill Hill and I look forward to welcoming him to Westminster."

According to the RCSLT, all children need help to develop their skills to communicate from infancy and many children and young people benefit from extra help to improve their skills. Seven per cent of children aged around five years have specific speech and language impairment and a further 1.8 per cent have speech, language and communication needs link to other conditions, such as a learning disability, cerebral palsy and autism spectrum disorders.