AN Okehampton woman has been appointed second in command at the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted).
Elizabeth Passmore, who was head girl at the former Okehampton Grammar School, is the daughter of former Okehampton mayor and the first ever chairman of West Devon Borough Council, Walter Passmore.
She was this week made the new Director of Inspection at Ofsted.
Awarded the OBE in 1999 for her services to education, Miss Passmore spent 14 years teaching sciences in schools throughout England before becoming one of HM's Inspectors of Schools in 1988.
Since then her roles have included inspector of science, independent schools, the national curriculum for pupils aged 3-16 and school improvements.
Second in command to Mike Tomlinson, who has taken over as HM's Chief Inspector, the new director said this week she was very pleased to be involved more widely in developments at Ofsted and her particular responsibility would be future development of current inspection arrangements.
'The inspections of the last 12 months have recorded some very significant improvements in the quality of education within schools throughout the country,' she said.
'Ofsted inspections have given schools a much clearer picture of things they are doing well and those which they need to improve — to have somebody come in once in a while to give an independent view is very useful.'
Miss Passmore, 51, said that last year 40 per cent of primary schools inspected had no unsatisfactory teaching and that was a tremendous achievement by the teachers and staff.
'We have seen the way in which schools have used the findings of Ofsted inspections to make changes to become even better,' she said.
West Devon and Torridge MP John Burnett said Miss Passmore richly deserved the promotion and it was 'particularly reassuring' that there was someone at the highest level of Ofsted who understood about education in rural towns.