Maths was the lesson of the day when representaties from local businesses visited Sprites Primary School in Ipswich to explain the subject’s importance within the workplace.

Year 6 pupils heard how maths was used in the visitors’ firms and were then given number-based tasks to complete.

The event was part of Suffolk County Council’s “Raising the Bar” initiative to improve standard in education, with the firms invited by Suffolk enterprise agency Menta and Lloyds Bank.

Teacher Suzanne Welton said: “It’s great to get people into the school and show pupils how useful maths is in real life. We can teach them the curriculum but it’s invaluable when they can see for themselves how maths is actually used in businesses like these, day to day.

She added: “As well as seeing how maths works, it was also useful to see the different jobs people do. I’m sure it’s given a lot of the children a better idea about the world of work.”

Among the business people who attended was Jane O’Riordan from Jane Hamerton Personalised Towels who said: “I had a great time working with the school children and explaining to them how maths works in my business every day.

“It can sometimes look like an obscure subject but when you show them how relevant it is in plain English, you can see the interest.”

Other organisations involved in the exercise included Ipswich Building Society, Beatons Group Accountants, Waitrose, GenR8 and Glorious Fodder.