Ofsted deliver incredible tribute to Ellington school

Nov 24 2009 by Nicola Juncar, The Journal

FOR the third time in a row, a Northumberland school has been rated "outstanding" - making it one of the best performing in the country.

Ellington First School, in Morpeth, was visited by Government inspectors, Ofsted, recently and their findings have just been published.

The report describes the school as outstanding in all categories, which is the highest grade possible.

Delighted headteacher Kevin Vardy said: “I am absolutely thrilled that Ofsted have once again recognised the quality of education and care that the children at Ellington receive.

“The report is a tribute to the staff, parents, children and the wider community, who work so hard to make the school such a special place and I hope that they all share my pride in our success.”

What makes this an even bigger achievement is that it’s the first school in Northumberland to have been graded outstanding under Ofsted’s tough new guidelines.

In September, Ofsted introduced a new framework to assess schools and other childcare settings, such as nurseries and daycare centres.

As well as observing lessons and assessing the pupils’ overall wellbeing, the inspectors now also look at how schools tackle discrimination and how they safeguard children.

In a letter to the children, lead inspector Andrew Scott said “there are so many strengths that I hardly know where to begin”.

With support from the local authority, the school has recently been extended to provide specialist rooms for working with individual children and groups of learners of all abilities, which have already proved to be beneficial.

In addition, new community facilities are also due to be opened in January.

Chair of governors Simon Allan added: “For the school to be judged as outstanding for a third time is a tremendous achievement and reflects the commitment and hard work of everyone associated with the school and its continuing pursuit of excellence.”

:: Click here to read the full Ofsted report

Page 2: Ofsted told it is 'feeding fears' over child safety