Town primary school rated good by Ofsted

It has improved in great majority of areas

A PRIMARY school in Hinckley has been rated “good” in its latest Ofsted inspection.

The education watchdog said Richmond Primary School had improved in the “great majority of areas” which were identified at the previous inspection in 2014.

The headteacher and senior leaders were praised for providing “effective leadership”, while the governors were commended for supporting and challenging the school’s bosses.

Inspectors said children are making “good progress” due to the “improved quality of teach- ing” and a “well planned” curriculum which develops pupils’ skills and knowledge.

Parents were “overwhelmingly positive” about the school and facilities for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities were good.

Headteacher Carolyn Munton said she is “delighted” by the report and thanked her staff for working “incredibly hard”.

However Ofsted identified some areas where the school needs to improve - mainly its early years provision where children’s progress was found to be “not consistently good”.

A report said “unsettled leadership and staffing” had a “negative impact” on the quality of teaching in Reception.

It added: “The proportion of children reaching a good level of development has improved since the previous inspection.

“This year the proportion is likely to be the highest ever achieved by the school, but it will still be below the national average.”

Inspectors said the school is not yet “outstanding” because sometimes there is a “lack of additional challenge” for the most gifted pupils and teachers can be “slow to provide effective support for pupils struggling to understand their work”.

Mrs Munton said: “We are delighted that Ofsted recognised the strengths that we have at Richmond Primary School and have judged the school to be a good school.

“Staff at Richmond have worked incredibly hard to secure this judgement with the support of a dedicated team of governors.

“We are particularly pleased that the quality of the curriculum has been recognised and that it has been acknowledged that the children love coming to school.

“We would like to thank the children, parents, carers and staff for all of their hard work and continued support in making Richmond the happy and thriving school that it is.”