Prime Minister David Cameron received a pop star's reception as he visited a girls school in Isleworth this week to set out his vision for a Conservative government he said would put families first.

The Prime Minister chose The Green School for Girls, in Isleworth, to make his key election speech on Monday (March 9), as its application to open a boys free school was approved.

A huge expansion of the free schools scheme was at the heart of his pledges for hard-working families, along with commitments for tax cuts, a major house building programme and more generous savings incentives.

It was all very dignified inside the building as he joined a science lesson before making his speech to an audience including several pupils.

Responding to questions about Tory commitments to education spending, he said: "Here we are at a brilliant girls school and they want to set up a really brilliant boys school. What's not to like about that?"

But after his media grilling, a brief appearance in the playground prompted the kind of fanatical throng and piercing screams the likes of which One Direction would surely be envious.

David Cameron sets out the Conservatives' policy commitments

As Mr Cameron beat a hasty retreat, the girls chased after him, mobiles aloft, with one screaming "he touched my hand".

Brentford & Isleworth MP Mary Macleod, whose reception was less fervid, said it was refreshing to witness a gaggle of teenagers so excited to see a politician, albeit one with the PM's celebrity pull.

The school's application for a boys school specialising in science and technology was one of three new secondary free schools in Hounslow to be approved this week.

The others were the Logic Studio School, sponsored by Feltham Community School and specialising in computing and international logistics, and the HiP (Hounslow Improvement Partnership) School in the Brentford/Isleworth area, started by a consortium of local headteachers.

Ms Macleod described getting three new schools confirmed in one day as "amazing" news for the borough.

"It's great we're getting much-needed new school places so local children can get the education they deserve," she added.

Brentford and Isleworth MP Mary Macleod

Free schools are state-funded schools which can be started by anyone and are independent from local authority control.

Hounslow Council has forecast demand for 30 extra forms of entry, equivalent to four large new secondary schools, by 2019.

It is looking to expand a number of existing secondary schools but the new free schools will go some way towards meeting that demand.

The Green School for Boys has approval from the Department for Education to open in September 2017, though the trust plans to appoint a headteacher by September next year.

Like the girls school, in Busch Corner, it will be a Church of England school, with some places reserved for Christians, but will accept pupils of all and no faiths.

A preferred site within walking distance of the girls school has been identified and the school will initially take 180 year seven pupils, expanding in numbers each year to eventually accommodate 1,260 boys.

Jill Coughlan, chief executive of the Green School Trust, said: "The boys school will focus on the learning needs of boys, addressing their relative under-performance nationally compared with girls.

"It will focus on the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects and on building character and improving employability."

She added that the school would have links with local companies, including BSkyB and British Airways, giving students the chance to experience real workplace scenarios so they are better equipped for the job market.

She also said there would be some shared curriculum and teaching resources between the two schools as well as joint extra-curricular activities.