Elizabeth Garrett Anderson headteacher Sarah Beagley and students on International Women’s Day

A FORMER First Lady of the United States has been heaping praise on a secondary school that has been rated as “Outstanding”.

Michelle Obama said that she wanted to congratulate all the students, teachers, and staff at Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School in Angel for their “incredible achievement”.

She added: “My time with the girls at EGA was a transformative experience for me as First Lady, and I think about it often. It means the world to know just how much the students are thriving.”

The Harvard-educated lawyer first visited the school in 2009 when she spoke about the power of sisterhood. At the time, she told pupils: “I am an example of what is possible when girls from the very beginning of their lives are loved and nurtured by people around them.

“I was surrounded by extraordinary women in my life who taught me about quiet strength and dignity”.