THE new head of a West Devon primary school has been praised for her ?inspirational leadership? which has resulted in rapid improvements at the school. Becky Crispin took over at Horrabridge Primary School in September following a period of uncertainty, which saw four heads and acting heads in two years and substantial turnover in other staff. In the Ofsted report following an inspection of the school last month, which rated the school as ?satisfactory?, education inspectors said the whole ethos of the school had improved considerably. ?Staff, parents and pupils alike (are) fully confident in its successful future,? they said. ?Horrabridge School has improved rapidly in the recent past and has a good capacity to improve even further in the future. ?The main reason for this is the inspirational leadership provided by the headteacher. ?Other significant factors include the commitment of the staff and governors, the support of parents and the local community and the positive attitudes of the pupils themselves.? One parent told the inspectors that respect for the school in the community was ?snowballing? and described it as having a ?positive and determined? feel. A delighted Mrs Crispin said: ?This report is a just reward for all the hard work that the staff, pupils and parents have put into the school and the support it has had from the community. ?I am determined that this school will continue to develop to be at the heart of the community here in Horrabridge providing excellent and inclusive education for all. ?I am particularly pleased that we are becoming increasingly popular with local families with a 25 per cent increase in pupils since September. ?We have lots of exciting plans to develop the school and improve the accommodation to build on the new computer suite we opened last term.? The report says that pupils? achievement at Horrabridge is broadly average but acknowledges that Mrs Crispin and the staff have already instigated a number of strategies to ensure further improvement, some of which have not had time to take effect. The report praised the ?infectious enthusiasm? of the teachers and their effective management of the pupils who were always encouraged to try harder. Pupils? attendance was better, personal development and wellbeing were good, they were friendly, behaved well in and out of lessons and were proud of their school. The inspectors said: ?Pupils have good attitudes towards their work and are keen to learn. They are known and valued as individuals by staff and are very secure in the knowledge that they have adults around them who care for and support them well.? The inspectors said more needed to be done, including developing effective assessment systems and the role of subject managers, and catering for higher ability pupils. Mrs Crispin said all the areas highlighted by the inspectors were already in the school?s strategic improvement plan for next year and the curriculum would be reviewed. l Horrabridge has become the first school in Devon Local Authority to be awarded the Gold Standard National Clean Air Award ? a Roy Castle Cancer Foundation initiative ? in recognition of its commitment to provide a tobacco smoke-free environment.
