A teacher at Glusburn Primary School is sitting pretty after being nominated teacher of the year in a national contest.

Alan Steel, of Baildon, is one of only 20 teachers in the UK who has been honoured with a "bench to build bridges", after pupils took part in an online anti-bullying initiative.

The scheme, part of the Beat Bullying website, invited children across the country to vote for the teacher they thought had done the most to promote friendship and make their school a better place.

Annette Waggett, a higher level teaching assistant at Glusburn Primary, spotted the scheme and decided to involve her school.

Pupils were asked to write brief statements on why they had selected a particular teacher.

Several children described Mr Steel as the "greatest teacher in the world", and as someone who was "kind, caring" and "thoughtful".

Their nomination was then sent to Beat Bullying, which later announced the national winners.

Mr Steel was awarded a bench and a DVD of the film "Bridge to Terabithia", which is about two children who have to cope with bullies at their school.

Mr Steel, a year six teacher who has been at Glusburn Primary for two years, said he was quite shocked to have been nominated.

"I didn't know anything about this at first but it's really nice that the children have written these comments about me," he said.

"We do aim to make this school a safe and friendly place for them."