Primary school near Oswestry requires improvement
A primary school has been told by the Government's education watchdog that it must make improvements.
Ofsted inpectors who visited the St Andrew's CofE Primary School at Nesscliffe said children were not making enough progress through school.
However they acknowledged that changes had already been made and those improvements were being seen at the school, which has 61 pupils aged 3-11.
The report said pupils did not make consistently good progress across the school in reading, writing and mathematics and as a result left with standards that were not as high as they should be.
Teachers have also been told to challenge pupils, including the most able, to make the rapid progress and reach the high standards that they should and to use support staff more effectively.
In his report, lead inspector, Mr Richard Boswell said: "Pupils do not always develop a love of reading because they do not have access to a wide variety of interesting and challenging books and they do not have enough opportunities to practise their problem-solving skills in mathematics or to develop their writing at length."
However the report praised the new executive headteacher Nicola Maddock for providing "very effective leadership".
Since January, the school has been federated with West Felton CofE Primary School as a member of the Westcliffe Federation.
"The school now has a clear sense of direction that is shared by pupils, staff and parents," the report said.
"The governing body bring expertise, experience and strategic planning to the newly formed school federation.
"The recent changes in leadership and management have led to improvements in pupils' behaviour and the quality of teaching.
"These, in turn, are beginning to raise achievement."
The school was also praised for providing good support for disadvantaged pupils, disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs.
Inspectors also said the youngsters felt safe in the "caring and friendly" school.
"Pupils have positive attitudes to their learning," it adds. "They are well behaved in class and around the school. They make a significant contribution to the life of the school.
"The school is successful in promoting pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development as well as their physical well-being."
The school was not available for comment.
