'We couldn't wait to show Ofsted our brilliant school is better than 'requires improvement''
The headteacher of a primary school that has bounced back from a 'requires improvement' rating has spoken of his pride in staff and his 'frustration' over the Ofsted process.
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Ben Crompton took over as executive headteacher of Newhampton Church of England Schools Federation back in September 2021.
Two months later, and barely out of the coronavirus pandemic, a visit from Ofsted to Welshampton Church of England Primary School would bring with it the dreaded words 'requires improvement'.
The 2021 inspection praised the "calm and orderly" school and the ambitions of the new executive head, granting the school a 'good' rating for three out of five categories.
But inspectors raised concerns about the curriculum that meant 'quality of education' and 'early years provision' was rated 'requires improvement' - which dragged down the overall judgement.
Two and a half years later, Ofsted inspectors returned to the school. In a report published on Thursday, inspectors were full of praise for the small school of just 64 pupils, and bumped it up to 'good'.
Looking back on the 2021 judgement, Mr Crompton said it was a frustrating time.
