Junior school is on the up (From Basingstoke Gazette)

Junior school is on the up

8:50am Saturday 31st July 2010 in News By Emily Roberts, Chief Reporter

IT WAS a good end to the year for staff and pupils at Winklebury Junior School which has finally been lifted out of “special measures”.

The school, in Willoughby Way, Winklebury, Basingstoke, was put into “special measures” after being branded “inadequate” in June 2008.

Inspectors from education watchdog Ofsted said the school was failing to give the 199 pupils on roll an acceptable standard of education, and those responsible for leading, managing or governing the school were not demonstrating the capacity to secure necessary improvement.

At the time, a large proportion of pupils were not making good enough progress in English, maths and science, and standards were below average by the end of Year Six.

The Ofsted team said teachers often expected too little of pupils, and the school leaders and managers were underestimating pupils’ standards on entry to the school.

The school has had regular monitoring checks every few months to make sure it has been on target to improve, and it has now been graded as a “satisfactory” school.

There are now 158 pupils on roll and a new head teacher is starting in September, to take over from acting head Lynda Downes. She is among various acting head teachers who have been involved in the recovery process after taking over from the previous head teacher, who retired.

Christine Clayton will now lead both the infant and junior schools in the new term to enable joint working practices to be established between the two.

She said: “I am delighted to hear the news of the recent Ofsted inspection and am looking forward to working with everyone in the school community as we continue to build on the improvements already made.”

The recent Ofsted report, published this month, said the junior school had steadily overcome the challenges it faced in the past.

Pupil attainment is now broadly in line with the national average and their progress is at least satisfactory.

The report said: “Leaders and managers use self-evaluation appropriately and are providing the drive, direction and clarity for the school to improve further.”

Mark Tarantino-Hind, chair of the governors, said the school is going from strength to strength.

He added: “The school has faced a number of significant challenges over the past two years and the dedication and determination of all of those involved in raising standards across all aspects of school life has been a privilege to be a part of.

“As a governing body, we are determined to continue to make improvements to the school.”