WHEN you think of a stage school, images of precocious children and pushy parents spring to mind. The idea of encouraging youngsters to draw attention to themselves, then showering them with praise for doing so, is one which sits uncomfortably with the traditional British reserve.

But for an increasing number of the region's young people, lapping up the limelight is precisely where they want to be.

And far from standing in their way, parents are actively encouraging them to pursue their dreams by sending them to fame-style academies.

As one of the fastest growing of these, the Teesside branch of Stagecoach, bears the enviable reputation of having spawned Jamie Bell, star of the critically acclaimed film Billy Elliott.

Since it began three years ago, the school has notched up a catalogue of awards, of which several have been won by its principal, Trudy Hindmarsh.

Although the former Billingham teacher doesn't coach the school's three to 18-year-olds herself, she is clearly its driving force.

Taking a break from supervising the Sunday afternoon class at Teesside High School, in Yarm, she explains her ethos.

"The children are encouraged to have a go and they are rewarded when they do - we even give the tiny ones stickers.

"Everyone starts with a different level of confidence and even if I don't always see it, their parents notice that it increases. The children mix and bring each other on," she says.

The idea of developing their children's confidence is obviously a major reason why parents choose to send them to Stagecoach.

And for students like 13-year-old Elliott Francis, the school's formula is clearly working. The slightly-built youngster, who speaks in the shy tones of early adolescence, describes how not even painful stitches following an operation, prevented him from travelling to London for an audition.

"The first time I went for an audition for Oliver at the London Palladium, they offered me a part in Fagin's gang but I had to drop out because my mum was ill," he says. "Then, two years later, they recalled me again but I had just had my appendix out. I still went because I really wanted the part."

Although he was unsuccessful that time, an opportunity to play Oliver with Teesside Operatics came up shortly afterwards and Elliott, of Ingleby Barwick, grabbed it with both hands.

"I feel more confident when I'm on stage," he says. "I want to do this as a career."

At the other end of the scale are children like Liam Gamble, also 13, from Yarm. Although the blond, blue-eyed youngster may not fit the image of a precocious young performer, he exudes a quiet confidence that belies his age.

It is of little surprise that he was snapped up for the part of Robson Green's son in a forthcoming legal drama - his combination of intelligence and looks must be every casting director's dream. Another factor in his success must surely be that he is nonchalant about acting, claiming that it is just one of his many interests.

He says: "I didn't expect to get a part in anything so I'm quite happy if I don't end up being an actor."

Liam, like the other members of Stagecoach, must take singing and dancing as well as acting lessons to get a solid grounding in the performing arts.

Although he admits to a strong dislike for the dancing element, for others, mainly the girls, this is one of the school's main attractions.

A number of them, including 13-year-old Helen Rogan, of Yarm, make up a cabaret group that regularly performs at charity events.

Helen says it gives her a chance to test her performance skills.

"We go somewhere different every other Tuesday and it really helps you to start off in the profession."

She, like many of the other youngsters, harbours dreams of becoming an actress when she is older. If this doesn't happen - which she fully accepts is a possibility - she says she will be a drama teacher instead.

Her friends Claire Warwick, of Yarm, and Sarah O'Connor, of Billingham, agree. Their ultimate ambition is relatively small-scale in what is one of the most difficult professions to pursue.

While some may dream of Hollywood stardom, the girls would be entirely happy to grace the small screen in one of the major soaps.

Their parents, like the other Stagecoach mothers and fathers, are entirely happy to chauffeur them wherever the call of fame dictates. For some, like Mary Coates, whose son Adrian is one of the school's younger members, this can even entail exerting a bit of gentle pressure when the child is unwilling to go.

"I think if they have got the chance to go for an audition, you have got to encourage them," says Mrs Coates, of Wynyard, slightly tempering this by adding: "He's very young and if he doesn't want to go any more when he's a teenager, that will be fine."

Another mother, Alice Knowles, of Darlington, is a similarly shrewd operator when it comes to managing her daughter's nascent career.

She admits to painstakingly researching the area's stage schools to find the one most capable of managing eight-year-old Brittany's singing talent.

The gap-toothed child is now rehearsing for her first lead role as Annie in a Stockton Operatics production.

While the old adage about stages and daughters being incompatible may one day ring in her ears, Mrs Knowles, like the other parents, is simply doing what anyone would in enabling her child to pursue a dream.

And who knows, we may yet see some of them in Coronation Street.