STAFF and children at Princetown Primary School are celebrating after receiving a ‘Good’ inspection report from Ofsted — a rise from its previous ‘Requires Improvement’ grade in 2017.

The school was inspected in June and all aspects were judged as good — effectiveness of leadership and management, quality of teaching, learning and assessment, personal development, behaviour and welfare, outcomes for pupils, and early years provision.

Headteacher Abby Bassett said that since the 2017 report the school had worked ‘extremely hard’ to improve the school’s rating.

The report highlighted that since the previous inspection, pupils’ achievement had significantly improved. ‘In particular, current pupils, including the disadvantaged, are making strong progress in reading and mathematics from their starting points.’

The lead inspector also noted that there was an effective partnership with the An Daras Multi-Academy Trust which had ‘strengthened leadership at all levels within the school’.

‘The management partnership with the An Daras Multi-Academy Trust has been instrumental in helping the school to move forward. The head of school has established a clear vision for improvement and set high standards for all pupils. Well-focused teamwork has secured good leadership, teaching and pupils’ achievement. As a result, pupils’ outcomes continue to rise. ‘Leaders and governors have successfully implemented an effective programme of training and development. Mathematics teaching is highly effective and develops pupils’ arithmetic skills and reasoning abilities.

‘Teachers use the broad and balanced curriculum effectively to plan a wide range of activities that engage pupils’ interests and help them make good progress.’

She added that staff and all parents and carers feel that the pupils are safe and well cared for at the school. One parent summarised: ‘You only have to be within the school for a few minutes to feel that it is welcoming and a safe, lovely environment for our children to thrive and grow in.’

The inspector continued: ‘Over the past two years, pupils’ progress has improved due to better teaching, with teachers focusing more precisely on meeting the needs of the pupils in Year 2 and Year 6. However, too few pupils reach the higher standard in Year 6 due to significant gaps in prior learning.’

The Ofsted inspector said that the school could improve further by improving standards in writing across the school by ensuring that the teaching of writing considers pupils’ starting points, especially for pupils with SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disability), and to improve outcomes for pupils by ensuring that leaders and managers provide staff with the training they need to accurately assess and plan activities for pupils with SEND.

On seeing the Ofsted report Mrs Bassett said: ‘I am pleased to say that we have been judged as a “Good” school.

‘I want to take the chance to thank all of the pupils, staff, parents, governors, PTFA and the local community, I am very proud of you all.’