POLITICIAN Ed Balls was on hand to present school leavers with their GCSE certificates in Weymouth last night.

The secretary of state for children, schools and families joined South Dorset MP Jim Knight at the special presentation evening at All Saints School.

The pair also both gave short speeches of encouragement to the audience of youngsters, parents, teachers and governors.

Kim Waters, personal assistant to headteacher Tim Balmforth, said: "We invited Jim Knight down and it just so happened he was spending the day with Ed Balls.

"He was more than happy to come and we were lucky because it fitted for them both to come together.

"We were very pleased, it all fell into place very nicely."

The evening was held to reward All Saints School leavers for their GCSE exam results this year.

Nearly three quarters of GCSE pupils gained five or more A* to C grades, with a quarter of all entries securing A* or A grades.