DELIGHTED children and staff at a Wolverley school are celebrating an impressive turnaround in two years after the school was judged as ‘requires improvement’ by Government inspectors.

Wolverley CE Secondary School, in Blakeshall Lane, was inspected by Ofsted in June and was given an overall ‘good rating’.

The report is a far cry from two years earlier, when the school was judged as requiring improvement with a host of changes to be made to improve, before their next inspection in 24 months.

Bryn Thomas, headteacher, said: “We are absolutely delighted with the outcome of the latest Ofsted inspection.

“Staff, students and all school members deserve this rating from Ofsted. The school has moved on so much in the last two and a half years.

“At our last inspection in 2014, we were rated as requires improvement – we have moved on massively from there.

“It is all about high expectations, a unique school and fantastic relationships between staff, students and parents.”

The inspectors praised leadership for energising staff and improving the standard of education and that good teaching is characterised by high expectations and instilling in pupils the attitudes, knowledge and skills they require to progress.

The report stated: “Teachers ensure the majority of current pupils make good gains in the learning, especially at key stage three and four.

“Disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and disabilities make good progress.

“Pupils, parents and staff are overwhelmingly positive about the school’s improvements since the last inspection.”

Inspectors also noted: “Pupils behave well in and around the school. Their positive relationships with each other and their teachers support engaging and effective learning.”

Inspectors said the school was not ‘outstanding’ yet due to standards in sixth form not yet rising rapidly, attendance of some groups of pupils is not improving as quickly as it should and numeracy skills are not as well developed as literacy skills.

However, the school has been told they can improve further by ensuring that assessment information is used effectively to plan learning that meets the needs of students and developing effective systems to check and monitor standards, irrespective of where students study.

Analyses of patterns and trends of attendance and using this information more effectively to inform actions to secure further improvement and working closely with parents of those children whose attendance is poor to ensure regular attendance, to improve further.