A headteacher said  'significant improvements' have been made after her village primary school lost its outstanding rating to be placed into the requires improvement category.

All areas of Walmsley CE Primary School were said to be in need of improvement after an Ofsted visit.

The school had held the top grade for 16 years.

Ofsted inspectors reported that  pupils are ‘happy and feel’ safe in the school which “is ambitious for its pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), to succeed”.

But they found that some pupils do not achieve as well as they should.

Headteacher Joanna Atherton says that although the Ofsted assessment framework has notably changed since the last inspection, she acknowledges the findings, and says that there is work to be done.

Ms Atherton said: “While the Ofsted assessment framework has changed significantly since our school was last inspected 16 years ago, we acknowledge the findings of this report and recognise that there is work to do.

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“We have already made a number of significant improvements, and these are highlighted within the report.

“These include the introduction of a new curriculum, new policies on behaviour and attendance and working with external experts to strengthen safeguarding, maths, writing and phonics whilst keeping the wellbeing and the achievements of the children at the heart of everything we do.

“We look forward to welcoming Ofsted back to our school in the near future and to demonstrating the progress we have made.”

Ofsted praised the enrichment activities at the school which enthused the pupils.

But the report says that some pupils “do not achieve as well as they should”.

The report continued: “This is because there are weaknesses in the delivery of the curriculum. “Some pupils have gaps in their knowledge as a result.

“The majority of pupils behave well in lessons.

“They are polite and well-mannered.

“There is a calm feeling when pupils move around the school.

“However, a minority of pupils do not behave as well as they should during lessons.

“Sometimes, the behaviour of these pupils disrupts the learning of their peers.”

Inspectors noted that a new behaviour policy has recently been introduced which establishes high expectations for pupils.

And that the school has recently made "considerable changes to the curriculum" with the  school developing systems to ensure that any gaps in pupils’ knowledge are closed rapidly.

Inspectors noted that the school has successfully prioritised the teaching of reading.

A spokesperson for Bolton Council said: “We note the outcome of the recent Ofsted inspection at Walmsley C.E. Primary School.

“The school has already put a number of measures in place to address the issues raised in the report and we continue to work closely with them to implement the necessary improvements as soon as possible.”

This school was last inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 16 years ago and judged ‘Outstanding’ under a previous inspection framework.

This reflected the school’s overall effectiveness under the inspection framework in use at the time.

From then until November 2020, the school was exempted by law from routine inspection, so there has been a longer gap than usual between graded inspections.

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