Infant school in New Ollerton making good progress after being told to improve

Maun Infant and Nursery School, which has about 200 pupils, aged three to seven, on its books, was given a monitoring inspection after two successive ‘Requires Improvement’ verdicts from Ofsted in 2018 and 2022.

However, inspector Christine Watkins has now written to head teacher Kerry Norman to acknowledge that the Walesby Lane school has “responded robustly to address recommendations”.

Those recommendations had focused on upgrading the curriculum, bolstering support for pupils with special needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and encouraging better involvement from governors.

Ofsted had also insisted that youngsters did not have a detailed-enough knowledge of diversity and equality, and “were not as prepared for life in modern Britain as they should be”.

After her fresh assessment, Mrs Watkins wrote: "You have worked as a team to refine and adapt the curriculum until you were satisfied it is fit for purpose. You plan to monitor its impact over the coming year.

"Leaders have also revised and improved the school’s provision for pupils with SEND. They receive well-planned support that enables them to make positive progress.

"Governors have taken steps to strengthen the way in which they hold leaders to account for the school’s performance. They are more proactive in visiting the school to check for themselves the pace of improvement.”

The Ofsted inspector also accepted that diversity and equality “are now clear themes running through the curriculum” as part of pupils’ development.

She said children are being taught about a range of religions, faiths and cultures, and added: “They are becoming more aware of the wider world, and of treating everyone with equal respect.”

Mrs Watkins stressed that “more work is necessary” before the school can upgrade its rating to ‘Good’. But she accepted that “leaders are ambitious for all pupils to achieve well and receive a good-quality education”.

Head teacher Miss Norman said she was “very pleased” with the findings of the Ofsted inspection.

In a letter to parents, she said: “The improvement journey for schools is never-ending. We are pleased to have the positive impact of our actions acknowledged.

"As our school motto says, we will continue to ‘reach for the stars’ as we strive to do our very best for all our children.”