'The children are beautiful and superbly behaved' - delighted headteacher reacts to Ofsted report

The education watchdog visited Sir Alexander Fleming Primary School on November 5 and 6 and graded children's behaviour and attitudes as 'Outstanding'.

A recently published report praised the school for being 'warm and welcoming' and graded the centre's quality of education, personal development, leadership and management and early years provision as 'Good' alongside the commendation for pupils' behaviour.

Inspectors said the school's motto of 'Belong, Being, Becoming' "shines through", and added that "staff want the best for pupils and pupils want to do their best to please staff". 

The Ofsted report said: "Pupils show they enjoy learning through their excellent attitudes in lessons. Their behaviour in and out of lessons is exemplary."

Headteacher at the school, since 2019, Katy Tomlinson is extremely proud of her staff and children. She said the school's outdoor learning provision is "amazing".

"We are really pleased, we had been waiting for it for a long time and our school has changed and grown so much in the last five years since the last inspection," said the primary school's headteacher. 

"Our behaviour was graded outstanding this time, and the children are just beautiful and superbly behaved.

"For the area we are in, being in a highly deprived area, people don't always expect that of our children but they are beautiful.

"There's been a massive amount of hard work from teachers, teaching assistants and all of the staff. Everyone has bought into our +culture and ethos, and into loving our children and caring for them, and making sure that our children want to come to school.

"Our attendance is really high, and behaviour is really good because children want to be here, and that is down to my teaching team." 

Ofsted reported that Sir Alexander Fleming Primary School has nearly 400 pupils on its roll.

The report said that the school has taken action to address "historical concerns" about behaviour, and that the school is "now calm and orderly". 

It read: "Pupils know the school’s expectations of behaviour and they follow them. They are respectful of staff and each other and prefer to focus on their learning. As a result, pupils’ behaviour is excellent."

Inspectors said that parents of pupils "rightly" have confidence in the school, and added that relationships are built quickly between staff and children when they join.

The report also said that the primary school has "sensibly" changed its approach to the teaching of writing during the last year.

It added: "The school’s PSHE programme ensures teachers cover a wide range of important topics effectively. This includes physical and emotional health, technology safety and forming strong, healthy relationships. Pupils get to explore their talents and interests through a growing number of clubs."

The full report can be viewed here.