Staff and pupils singled out for praise by Ofsted inspectors

Pupils and staff at Priory Park Infant School and pre-school have been celebrating following a recent Ofsted inspection.

The school, in Almond Road, has maintained its ‘good’ rating after inspectors recognised “excellent behaviour” and “supportive parents” and singled out the head teacher for praise.

The Ofsted inspectors reported: “Your pupils are proud of their school. They behave well in lessons, show respect to each other and contribute to the welcoming ethos.”

Children were said to have made good progress in reading, writing and mathematics and, at the end of the year, were above average in these areas. The proportion of pupils attaining greater depth was seen as “a strength of the school”.

“Teachers’ expectations in the school are set high which has had a big impact on pupils’ achievements,” the reported continued.

“Pupils feel safe knowing that adults will help them if they have any worries and there is a very strong culture of safeguarding. But every good ship needs someone to steer it and Priory Infant’s leadership was seen as strong too, with an aspirational and reflective leader in head teacher Angie Smith, who is always looking for ways to improve the school.”

Mrs Smith said: “We are all incredibly proud of the outcome of the inspection. To continue to improve is crucial if a school is to maintain its good status.

“Words such as ‘strong’ and ‘highly effective’ were used during the visit and feedback to our governors stated that several areas were reaching an ‘outstanding’ level.

“The children continued to be amazing on the day of the inspection and we felt very proud of them all. The inspection highlighted the dedication and skill of all my staff team and I am very proud of them and appreciative of their continual hard work.”