Olympic star Gail Emms MBE recently inspired pupils with a badminton masterclass at a school in Bushey.

St Margaret’s School hosted a "High Performance Programme" event, welcoming young elite athletes and giving them an unparalleled experience of engaging with a sporting role model.

Students took part in a badminton masterclassStudents took part in a badminton masterclass (Image: St Margaret’s School)

During the day, pupils in Years 5 and 6, along with seniors from Years 8 to 11, participated in specialised badminton workshops under Emms' expert tutelage.

Despite the warm weather, the youngsters displayed "lots of enthusiasm, energy and drive", eagerly learning new skills and techniques.

Gail Emms worked with students on speed of movementGail Emms worked with students on speed of movement (Image: St Margaret’s School)

After the event, Emms said: "Visiting St Margaret’s has been a wonderful experience.

"I felt instantly welcomed and was super impressed by the children’s energy and the effort they showed.

"It was fantastic to see that sport at St Margaret’s is not only a very serious addition to school life but is also given recognition more widely from a careers perspective too.

"Playing sport at an elite level can be very tough, you need to learn to love pressure, absorb everything, ask your coaches questions and keep a training diary too."

Students learned about playing badminton at an elite levelStudents learned about playing badminton at an elite level (Image: St Margaret’s School)

Emms, who started playing badminton at four years old and represented England professionally until her retirement in 2008, added: "The more you can do to prepare from a young age, the better."