The headteacher of Armley Primary School has promised ‘swift improvements’ after the school was rated as ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted inspectors.
Inspectors said the quality of education pupils receive had ‘deteriorated significantly’ since the last Ofsted inspection in 2014 and added: “Although urgent remedial work has started recently, the school’s overall effectiveness is inadequate”.
James Clay, interim headteacher at Armley Primary School, said:
“The school is extremely disappointed with the outcomes of the report and is eager to make swift improvements for our pupils.
“Prior to and since the inspection, the school has implemented many changes all aimed at providing the best possible education for our pupils. This work includes support from other schools, specialist leaders in education and the local authority.
“We are pleased to note that the Ofsted report acknowledges recent improvements in behaviour and teaching that have been implemented.”
The report, which criticised the lack of depth in the curriculum, also said teachers were not assessing pupils’ learning effectively or have a thorough understanding of pupils’ starting points or additional needs. It raised concerns about some pupils’ behaviour and added:
“Lessons are often undemanding and do not meet the needs of pupils, particularly disadvantaged pupils and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).”
The report also said that the progress made by Year 6 pupils in 2018 placed the school in the bottom 10% of schools nationally in reading, writing and mathematics.
The report acknowledged recent improvements and praised the ‘stronger’ progress of reception children than those in the Nursery and key stages 1 and 2. It added:
“The interim headteacher and supporting headteacher from another school provide purposeful leadership. Together they are beginning to address the many shortfalls in the school’s performance.”
Read the Ofsted report in full here.
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