Academy is the first in the country to be ranked ‘outstanding’ under new Ofsted framework

A Castleford school has become the first in the country to be given an ‘outstanding’ under Ofsted’s new assessment framework.

The education watchdog introduced a tougher inspection format in September, but it failed to dent Castleford’ Academy’s progress which achieved the top mark across every key area, including the quality of education, behaviour, leadership and the school’s sixth-form provision.

Headteacher George Panayiotou said: “I am delighted Ofsted have agreed with our assessment of Castleford Academy and its sixth form.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“The positive comments in the report show that our hard work and high expectations have resulted in exceptional academic outcomes, whilst maintaining a nurturing and highly supportive environment where the well-being of both pupils and staff are a priority.

“I would personally like to thank all staff, pupils, parents, carers and governors for their ongoing hard work and dedication.

“We are extremely proud of our outstanding achievements and to be the first secondary school in the country makes this even more special.”

The Ferrybridge Road school, which was visited in early October with the outcome published recently, had achieved a ‘good’ rating during its previous inspection in 2014.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Under the new guidelines, Ofsted said it would now look at what is taught and how it is taught and spend less time looking at test data.

They said they wanted the grade to reflect the area that matter most to parents, including the quality of education and behaviour.

Related topics: