STAFF and pupils at primary school in Baildon have been celebrating after inspectors found it had turned its fortunes around to be rated ‘Good’ by Ofsted.

Sandal Primary School, in West Lane, Baildon, received the rating following a recent Ofsted inspection, a marked improvement on its last inspection in 2016, when it was told it required improvement.

It was rated Outstanding for the personal development, behaviour and welfare of its pupils, and for its early years provision, and Good in all other areas.

In the inspection report, Ofsted praised school leaders for showing “absolute determination to improve the school’s performance”.

It said: “The head teacher leads with passion and purpose.

“She has an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for further improvement, and is determined to move it towards becoming outstanding.

“Pupils make good progress. Their attainment in reading, writing and mathematics is high. The rate of progress has been slightly slower in upper Key Stage 2, due to some inconsistencies in teaching in the past, however, these have now been addressed.

“Pupils develop an informed understanding of global issues and show high levels of respect and consideration for others. Children get off to a flying start in early years and make exceptional progress.”

To become Outstanding, Ofsted told the school it needed to “continue the rapid trajectory of improving progress for upper KS2”, improve links with parents and carers in early years, and “make sure children use correct spelling in their written work across the curriculum”.

It was also told to “continue to develop the role of middle leaders as part of the whole-school development plan” at the school, an area the report had identified as a current weakness at the school.