A PRIMARY school in Bury has been praised for taking effective action after an unfavourable Ofsted report.

Woodbank Primary School was judged to require improvement when inspectors visited in March.

But when an inspection team visited the school again on July 3, it noted there was a “buzz of energy and optimism about the school”.

In the March report, Ofsted said too few pupils were making consistently good progress; pupils did not have enough opportunities to practise and improve their writing skills; and senior and particularly middle leaders were not all fully involved in checking how well pupils were learning.

However, the latest inspectior report, led by Shirley Gornall, stated that senior leaders were working hard to identify any achievement gaps; that the attainment of Key Stage 1 pupils showed ‘good progress’; and that the school had amended its behaviour policy to ensure very good behaviour and positive attitudes to learning are the norm.

The report praised new headteacher Kelly Morgan, saying she had made an “immediate, highly positive impression” on the school since taking over in April, following a period of turbulence in leadership.

Ofsted said that, in order for the school, in Brandlesholme Road, to obtain a higher rating in its next report, the number of pupils exceeding expected progress in English and Maths needed to improve, along with the achievements of pupils in Key Stage Two.

Ms Morgan said she was satisfied with the report and hoped to receive at least a ‘good’ rating in the next Ofsted inspection.

She said: “We were very pleased with the outcome of the visit.

“Staff have worked really, really hard over the summer term and we are definitely heading in the right direction.

“I think with the stability we have at the school, things will progress quickly.

“We want to get a least a ‘good’ in the next report.

“There’s no reason Woodbank should not be an outstanding school. When we go back in September, we will hit the ground running.”