STAFF at an Accrington primary school are celebrating after been lauded as ‘outstanding’ by education watchdog Ofsted.

St Oswald’s Roman Catholic Primary School, in Hartley Avenue, was given the best possible score following an inspection earlier this month.

Lead inspector Nigel Cromey-Hawke found the school had improved on its last rating of ‘good’, and awarded it outstanding status in all five key inspection areas, including quality of teaching, achievement, and the behaviour and safety of its pupils.

He wrote: “St Oswald’s is exceptionally good at meeting the needs of all pupils who attend. As a result, pupils achieve exceptionally well from very low starting points.

“By the end of Year Six, attainment is above that expected nationally.”

The quality of teaching was also praised by Mr Cromey-Hawke, who found it ‘constantly adjusted to meet the changing learning needs of pupils.’ He added: “Many children enter the early years with identifiable learning needs, but the school meets these exceptionally well.

“The support for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development is exemplary. Consequently, pupils’ behaviour and relationships with adults and each other are outstanding.

“Their attitudes to learning are excellent. Pupils say they feel extremely safe and very well cared for.”

Headteacher Jeff Brown said: “In a climate where the inspection process is becoming more and more rigorous for schools, it is a tremendous achievement for our school community to do so well.

“This now gives us a platform to improve our school further with the opportunities and experiences that we provide for our children.

“Our priority over the coming year will be to work even harder to make our school even better.”

St Oswald’s is a smaller-than-average school, with a higher than usual number of female students, Ofsted’s report said.

To ‘further enhance the development of children in the early years’, resources for outdoor play and learning should be extended, Mr Cromey-Hawke added.