A HIGH school has been ordered to improve after its latest inspection.

Atherton Community School, a government flagship free school, has ranked at “requires improvement” in all five areas of marking by education regulator Ofsted.

Its overall ranking has dipped from its last inspection of “good” in 2014.

Inspectors said: “Leaders were unaware that pupils were underachieving until the inadequate GCSE results of 2017.

“This was because they had not ensured that teachers were assessing

learning accurately and because their checks on the quality of teaching and assessment had not been effective.

“Members of the local academy board have not done enough to arrest the school’s decline since the previous inspection.

“The quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement because it is not consistently good across the school.

The Ofsted inspection, which was conducted on February 7, did mention some positive aspects.

The report stated: “Leaders have used the disappointment of the 2017 examination results as a springboard for implementing a range of strategies to accelerate pupils’ progress.

“Rates of absence have increased markedly since 2015 and are above national averages.

“The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.”

School principal Lynn Burton added: “The areas for development identified in the report are all areas upon which we are already working.

“We are committed in securing at least “good” in every area and celebrating the achievement of our pupils in all year groups.”