Birkenshaw school requires improvement – Ofsted

The Station Lane school was described as good in a 2010 report and during an interim assessment last year. But when inspectors turned up this November, they saw problems in leadership and management, the quality of teaching and the achievement of pupils.

The report said: “In Key Stage Two, not enough pupils make good progress from their different starting points in reading and writing because teaching of these skills is not as strong as in Key Stage One.”

It added: “At times staff are not clear enough about how well pupils are doing in their work in order to give them the best improvement advice and most challenging activities.”

Headteacher Rebecca Martin responded: “Our school is in an unusual position because this was our first inspection since making the transition from a first school to a primary school.

“That was always likely to impact on Ofsted’s judgement because there have been many major changes in school recently, whereas they are increasingly looking for consistency over a long period.

“The report has still highlighted a lot of strengths, including that we’ve made a successful change to a full primary and that our achievement in Key Stage One is well above the national average.

“We were rated as good in two areas” – behaviour and safety of pupils and early years provision – “and, very importantly, Ofsted also recognised that we are progressing well and are very much on an upward curve.”

The next inspection is due within two years.