A moving dance and drama performance inspired by a real-life tragedy has seen the LeAF Multi-Academy Trust pick up top performing honours.

More than 100 students from the LeAF Academy in Bournemouth created, performed and staged Can You See Them Now? – based on the factual events of a slum child hijacking a Brazilian bus – for the southern premier final of Rock Challenge, held in Portsmouth.

Their production so wowed the judges that they were crowned the overall winners.

This betters their second place finish last year when LeAF was the first ever Bournemouth school to make it that far in the popular national competition.

Executive principal of the LeAF Academy, Dr Annetta Minard, said: “I am so proud of every student involved. They have been working on this for the best part of a year and have been totally driven by this project. They chose this particular real-life story as they wanted to investigate the reasons that drove this young boy to commit such an act.

“With Brazil very much on the world-stage at the moment through the World Cup, our students also wanted to reveal what life is like for many street kids in that country.

“Everyone involved in the production, from the stage crew to the makeup artists to the performers, have put their heart and souls into it.”

Thousands of young people from across the UK take part in Rock Challenge every year.

The competition is a series of performing arts events which encourages young people to choose themes to explore that demonstrate their dreams, aspirations or concerns.

LeAF Academy is one of the few schools to be designated a ‘premier’ school and able to compete in one of the three national premier finals (Scottish, northern and southern).

As well as coming first overall in the southern premier final, the LeAF team won all 13 individual categories for performance, production and design.