MEMBERS of the Makaton Rocks signing group at Lochies School have been praised at the Scottish Parliament following their recent appearance at Murrayfield.

More than a dozen pupils took a trip to the capital to sign of Flower of Scotland during the opening stages of the Scotland v France clash last month.

They stood behind the Scottish rugby team on the pitch, and pulled off a perfect rendition of the national anthem in front of a capacity crowd.

The youngsters' display impressed many of the spectators at the game and at home, including the Wee County's MSP, Keith Brown.

To recognise their accomplishment, he lodged a motion in the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday, August 27, praising them for their work.

It reads: "The parliament congratulates the Makaton Rocks signing group, formed of pupils from Lochies School in Sauchie, for their excellent performance.

"Notes that 15 children aged from P2 to S1 performed the national anthem using Makaton, an adapted form of British Sign Language, to a capacity 66,181 crowd."

The motion also thanked the pupils for "such an inspiring performance to all who were present, and wishes [them] the best for the future".

The performance came about after the signing group were invited to the match by Dominic McKay, Scottish Rugby's chief operating officer.

They caught his attention by posting a video of themselves signing the national anthem on Twitter earlier this year.

Obviously impressed, he arranged for them to perform in front of the spectators at Murrayfield, then gave them VIP treatment for the rest of the day.

According to Donna Wheater, Lochies' depute headteacher, the experience was "fantastic" and everyone there had a great time.

Lochies, Clackmannanshire's specialist primary school for learners with severe and complex additional needs, uses Makaton Sign Language to augment communication at the school.