Great Barr headteacher praised for 'inspired' leadership
A head teacher has been praised for her ‘inspired’ leadership in helping to maintain high standards at a school.
Ofsted has returned to Greenholm Primary for the first time in three years.
The large Great Barr-based first school on Greenholm Road which has around 400 pupils on the roll, was rated good overall in 2014 while the behaviour of students managed to reach the benchmark of ‘outstanding’.
Her Majesty’s inspector Mark Sims attended the school on September 19 and has subsequently wrote to headteacher Gill Turner to praise standards.
He said: “Under your inspired direction, the leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection.
“You have ensured a strong focus on improving teaching and learning through effective training of staff, including newly qualified teachers. Outcomes for pupils in reading, writing and mathematics are improving strongly and compare very favourably with national results at the end of key stages 1 and 2.
“Almost all staff and the very large majority of parents who responded to surveys agree that the school is well led.
“All staff who replied said they are proud to be a member of the school. All pupils who expressed a view in their survey said they would recommend the school to a friend. The school provides a very positive learning environment. In lessons visited during the inspection, pupils were completely engaged in their learning, free from interruptions or any disruptive behaviour.”
The school has managed to maintain standards despite extensive building work at the premises for the last two and a half years as it has expanded from a two form entry to a three form entry.
Ms Turner said: “We are really pleased the inspector has agreed with our own assessment of the school.
“There has been a lot of building work going on, at one particular time every part of the school was covered in scaffolding and children have had to be taught in metal huts.
“It has been very challenging circumstances but the children and staff have reacted very well to it all.”
The inspector also pointed out how the school had improved since its positive report in 2014.
Mr Sims added: “From a scrutiny of pupils’ books from the last academic year and the school’s assessment information, pupils currently in school have made rapid progress from their different starting points.
“This includes disadvantaged pupils and most pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
“At the time of the last inspection in 2014, inspectors recommended that leaders should improve teaching further, embed recent improvements in the quality of pupils’ writing in key stage 1 and ensure that governors’ visits to school regularly focused on progress towards school improvement priorities.
“Through placing a high emphasis on training and staff development, you have ensured that teaching and learning have continued to improve. “Newly qualified teachers are quickly integrated and retained, and go on to become successful teachers and leaders. This is building the school’s capacity to improve further.”
