Delight as infant school is rated '˜good' by Ofsted

Fairway Infant School, in Copthorne, underwent a two-day inspection at the beginning of February and the findings of lead inspector Lee Selby were published on Monday (February 29).

Headteacher Bridget Davison told parents she and her team were “absolutely delighted” Fairway had been given a ‘good’ rating – the second highest available.

Following a previous inspection in October 2013, teaching at Fairway was rated ‘requires improvement’ – something Mr Selby noted had been addressed well.

He said: “Teaching has improved since the previous inspection and is now consistently good in all year groups. Inspectors agree with the vast majority of parents who completed the Parent View survey and felt their children were taught well.”

Mr Selby listed only one area for further improvement in his report – the need for teaching to become ‘outstanding’, with further improvements in children’s writing, maths and phonics skills (the sounds letters make).

He recognised the work carried out by Mrs Davison and her team in the past 16 months and said: “Since the previous inspection, the headteacher has developed a strong culture of trust and teamwork in the school. This has resulted in improved teaching and outcomes for all groups of pupils.

“Parents are overwhelmingly positive about the school and how well it is led and managed.”

The achievements of children at the end of Key Stage 1 – aged seven – in the three Rs was seen to have improved since the previous inspection and Mr Selby said they were “well prepared for the next stage of their education”.

While the achievements of the most able pupils had also improved, the number reaching the higher levels at the end of Key Stage 1 was below the national average. The report acknowledged the school had set this as an area for further development.

Mrs Davison said: “We are absolutely delighted with the findings of the report which reflects the hard work and dedication of the whole team at Fairway. We felt that the inspection was carried out very professionally and we were given the opportunity to show our school at its best.

“We are particularly pleased that the inspection team recognised the good behaviour and politeness of our children.

“As always, we are very proud of them.”

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