PUPILS and staff at an Alston school have a spring in their step after receiving a successful Ofsted report.

Samuel King’s School, a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16, was rated ‘good’ at its most recent inspection on March 14 and 15.

It was rated ‘good’ in four out of five categories and ‘outstanding’ for personal development, behaviour and welfare.

Despite a previous inspection rating of ‘requires improvement’, the report stated: “The leadership of the headteacher is inspirational. He has taken effective measures to improve the school and has successfully addressed all of the areas for improvement identified in the last inspection report.”

Pupils’ behaviour was described as exemplary, while teaching had improved significantly since the last inspection and was judged to be ‘good’. The teaching of English was highlighted as a ‘real strength’, while mathematics was improving rapidly.

The school’s overall performance was confirmed as being above the national average, with pupils making good progress overall from average starting points.

Areas for further improvement highlighted in the report included: to continue improvements in teaching; to ensure that spelling errors and presentation of work are consistently addressed and to update the website with all mandatory information.

Headteacher Ian Johnson said: “Everyone has worked hard to continue to push the school forward – staff, governors, parents and the wider community.

“But I am particularly pleased that the hard work and commitment of our pupils has been recognised. They are the real stars in this report, and deservedly so.”

Chairman of governors Brian Cooper said: “I am absolutely delighted with the report. It is fully deserved and a great reflection of the hard work by all the staff and the dedication of the pupils.”