A North Devon primary school has been rated good across the board after making major improvements in every area of education and learning.
And the accolade from school inspectors came just a year after the new headteacher took up her post.
Ashleigh C of E Primary School has been rated good in each of the six areas inspected by the schools standards agency Ofsted.
Two senior inspectors visited Ashleigh in September and have now classed the overall effectiveness of the school as good as well as the quality of education, leadership and management, behaviour, personal development and Early Years.
In 2017 the school was rated as requiring improvement and a year later it joined the Ventrus Multi Academy Trust which runs primary and secondary schools across Devon.
Headteacher Antonia Lavictoire joined Ashleigh in September 2021 in her first headship after working at Orchard Vale Primary and Pilton Community College – both Ventrus schools.
“We are all delighted with the verdict of the Ofsted inspectors,” she said, “and that is the result of incredibly hard work by all the staff, pupils and governors with the support of our parents and the Trust.
“Staff at Ashleigh have been on a long improvement journey which was begun by my predecessor, Chris Greenhall.
“We want to ensure all our staff have high aspirations and ambitions for the children and we want all our pupils to excel at this school and then go on to secondary school and become lifelong learners.
“We have opened our doors to parents and built up links with our families and ensured there are always familiar faces at the gate if there are any concerns.”
In the Ofsted report, lead inspector Rachel Hesketh says:
“Ashleigh is a welcoming and inclusive school. Pupils are positive about their learning and behave well in lessons. (They) are proud of their school and they respect each other.
“With the support of the trust, leaders’ work to provide an ambitious curriculum has progressed well. The wider curriculum is being systematically improved.
“Teachers regularly assess what pupils know. They identify what is needed and provide support for pupils.”
The inspectors say that to improve still further the school needs to ensure that detailed assessment in all subjects enables teachers to spot gaps in pupils’ learning and plan subsequent lessons and they should “quality assure” the personal development curriculum.
Ms Hesketh highlights the improvements that have been made in core subjects such as English, maths and history and says that reading is at the centre of the curriculum
Mrs Lavictoire, who was born and brought up in North Devon before going to university in London and taking her teaching qualifications at Exeter University, said reading had been a real focus across the school.
Every class had reading as the first lesson in the morning right after the children had settled in.
“We make sure it is seen as a priority and our assessment results have risen from below average to above national expectations,” she said.
Ventrus chief executive, Gary Chown, said:
“We pride ourselves on developing the talents of all our staff and identifying future school leaders. Antonia has been able to gain valuable experience in a number of Ventrus schools and I am delighted she has been able to build on the initiatives Chris put in place and achieve this accolade from Ofsted.”