A PRIMARY school has finally got "back on track" after requiring improvement for six years.

Bishop Tufnell CofE Primary School, Pennyfields, Felpham, has been rated good by Ofsted following an inspection in July.

The school was rated requires improvement in 2016 after concerns were raised about the standard of teaching and the progress of students, with inspectors saying “teaching is not yet good, and does not help pupils to make the progress of which they are capable in reading, writing and mathematics”.

It retained the rating during a monitoring visit in 2017, a full inspection in 2018 and a monitoring visit in 2019-when inspectors criticised the school for not taking “effective action” to tackle the areas requiring improvement.

In March 2021 a remote monitoring visit was conducted which commended the school for taking “effective action”, including reviewing the curriculum.

Following the inspection in July, inspectors praised the school’s leaders for getting the school “back on track” and recognised the school for its “strong” pastoral care, the quick identification and support of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and the development of “rigorous procedures” to safeguard pupils.

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The report from July stated: “Pupils are happy at school and enjoy their learning. Leaders ensure that everyone is included. Pupils value the friendships they forge with their classmates and that kind staff help them to learn. This is a school where all pupils are cherished.

“Leaders are united in their passion and ambition to provide the best education. Leaders have got this school back on track and brought about steady improvement. Pupils are proud of their school and feel that they belong to the community it serves.”

However, inspectors said the school still needs to improve and expressed concerns about teachers not having the “knowledge and skills” to teach all areas of the curriculum.

The report said: “Effective use of assessment in the foundation subjects is not yet consistently in place. Teachers are therefore not always confident in knowing how secure pupils are in their knowledge and understanding. Leaders should carefully monitor the effectiveness of assessment to ensure that pupils know and remember more across the school’s curriculum.

“Some staff do not have the knowledge and skills they need to teach all the areas of the curriculum consistently well, for example in history and art and design. This has an impact on the consistency of teaching and affects how well pupils achieve.

“Leaders should ensure that staff are trained so that they have the subject and pedagogical knowledge they need to plan and teach all subjects effectively.”