Sandwell school celebrates 'good' Ofsted rating
Staff and pupils at a school are celebrating after achieving a 'good' overall rating in a Ofsted inspection, while elements were rated as 'outstanding'.
A three-strong inspection team led by lead inspector Michael Appleby visited the George Betts Primary Academy, in West End Avenue, Smethwick at the end of January.
They found the school's leadership and management to be outstanding, along with the behaviour and safety of pupils.
The quality of teaching and the achievement of pupils were described as good, along with the standard of early years provision.
The academy's principal Allan Shephard said: "I am delighted that Ofsted has recognised our unfaltering commitment to the children and families of Sandwell. I am particularly happy that they have highlighted the extraordinary progress that our children make."
Among the key findings from the Ofsted inspection were that the executive principal, principal and other leaders had been extremely effective in accelerating pupils' progress and improving the quality of teaching, while the high levels of personal care and support given to the pupils contributed significantly to the success of the school.
Teachers' assessments were also described as accurate and used effectively to ensure that all pupils made good progress, while provision for disabled pupils and those with special needs was also monitored well, ensuing they made good progress.
Governors were also said to have an excellent knowledge of the quality of the teaching and how well pupils were doing, while robustly holding leaders to account for the performance of the school.
However, the report also highlighted a number of areas which prevented the school from being rated as outstanding, including the fact that pupils' rate of learning varied across different subjects, while teachers' marking was not always effective in ensuring pupils improved their work and they did not always check the pupils acted on the advice they had been given.
During their visit, the inspectors observed teaching and learning in 21 lessons, while pupils' behaviour was observed in lessons and at break and lunch times. Discussions were also held with the executive principal, principal, senior leaders, staff and pupils.
