A primary school in Westhoughton continues to be a ‘good’ school after a recent inspection by the education watchdog – with ‘everyone proud to belong to this caring community’.

The Gates Primary School on Bristle Hall Way, Westhoughton, was handed the rating after an Ofsted inspection on September 20 and 21.

According to Amanda Downing, His Majesty’s Inspector, the school continues to be good after an ungraded inspection, the first since Ofsted judged the school to be good in June 2018.

Inspectors have praised the school in several areas including the arrangements for safeguarding being effective.

The report states: “Everyone at The Gates Primary School is proud to belong to this caring community.

“Pupils enjoy coming to school. They build positive and trusting relationships with staff. This helps them to feel happy and safe.”

As well as making pupils feel safe, the school has been praised for the high expectations they set.

The report states: “Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), rise to the high expectations that the school sets for their academic achievement and behaviour.

“They work hard and achieve well. Pupils and staff champion the school’s values, ‘The Gates Golden Goals’. These promote resilience and respect.”

Leaders were praised on their behaviour policy with pupils having positive attitudes to their education.

The report added: “Pupils show highly positive attitudes to their learning. Low-level disruption is rare.

“Pupils are polite and kind to one another. There is a clear behaviour policy in place that everyone knows and understands.

“This creates a sense of fairness and consistency for pupils.”

Finally, the school was praised for the curriculum which allows pupils to ‘achieve well’.

The report said: “The school is continually developing and improving the curriculum that is on offer.

“Consequently, pupils, including those with SEND, experience a broad and ambitious curriculum that engages them and meets their needs. Pupils achieve well as a result.”

During the visit, inspectors also found one way in which the school needs to improve.

The report states: “In a small number of foundation subjects, the assessment strategies that the school has devised are not used as effectively as they could be.

“This means that some pupils struggle to recall some aspects of their earlier learning.

“The school should ensure that it further refines and embeds its strategies for assessment in these few subjects so that pupils are more effectively supported to know and remember important information over time.”

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