Six years after it was last inspected by Ofsted, an Isle of Wight school has maintained its ‘good’ rating.
The Island Free School, in Ventnor, was visited by the government’s education watchdog in June.
Inspectors found pupils were extremely proud to attend the ‘vibrant, inclusive and happy’ school.
Their report, which has just been published, said the leaders’ vision is to inspire every pupil and broaden their horizons, raising their aspirations and standards, ensuring they study an ambitious curriculum with a strong academic core and rich cultural elements.
The school, which has over 600 pupils on its roll, has been approached for its reaction to the ‘good’ outcome.
Inspectors said pupils’ behaviour and manners are exemplary and incidents of bullying are extremely rare, but dealt with effectively by staff. As a result, pupils feel safe in school.
Inspectors did say the curriculum is not as highly ambitious and effective in some subjects as it is in others. Consequently, some pupils do not achieve as well as they could, particularly in key stage three, when writing at length or tackling more complex tasks.
Another area inspectors said could be improved was the provision for some pupils in the early stages of reading.
While most pupils receive effective additional support, a small number of pupils do not, as gaps in their reading knowledge are not identified precisely enough.
Pupils with special educational needs achieve well across most subjects and staff ensure additional support is individually tailored to those pupils which ‘makes a real difference’.
Inspectors hailed the provision for pupils’ wider development as a strength, where leaders nurture confidence, resilience and social awareness very well.
A very high priority is placed on safeguarding, the inspectors said.
Leaders and governors have instilled a strong culture of vigilance, underpinned by rigorous systems and high-quality training.
Staff are ‘hugely proud’ to work at the Free School and leaders and governors act effectively to reduce workload where possible and are very mindful of staff well-being.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may have been made by OnTheWight. Ed
Image: Johan Godinez under CC BY 2.0
