THE team at a York school are celebrating after their first inspection in more than a decade.

Ralph Butterfield School, which has 309 pupils in Haxby, is one of hundreds of schools across the country which were exempt from an Ofsted inspection for a time, having been graded outstanding many years ago. 

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Now more than 80 per cent of those schools are no longer rated as outstanding due to changes in the inspection process. Ofsted’s director of education, Chris Russell, said the new inspection framework has made the “outstanding” grade more “challenging and exacting.”

This was the first inspection at Ralph Butterfield since November 2011, with the report giving the school a new grade of ‘good’ and highlighting many of its recent improvements:

‘The school has designed an ambitious curriculum starting from early years. The curriculum ensures that children are ready for the next stage of their learning. The school’s values of respect, ambition, determination and integrity weave throughout it’.

Head teacher, Liz Clark, said: "As a team, we work tirelessly to give our children the very best educational experiences we can.

"Our motto ‘imagine, believe, strive, achieve’ defines the vision of those who are part of the Ralph Butterfield Primary School community. Our school is a very special place to be and I am incredibly proud of the children and staff."

Ofsted were also highly complimentary of the leadership of the school: ‘Leadership and the continued drive for improvement go hand-in-hand at Ralph Butterfield. Governors are a strength of the school. They hold school leaders to account for school performance through support and challenge. The determination for all pupils to be successful is a priority shared at all levels of leadership. There are extensive training opportunities on offer for staff. The consideration given to staff’s wellbeing and workload is far-reaching. Staff enjoy working at the school and feel valued. They describe the school as a caring, encouraging and happy place to work in’.

The school’s support of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) was also identified as an area of particular strength: ‘The school is an inclusive place to learn. As a result, these pupils thrive and achieve well', said inspectors.

When it came to areas where the school could improve, inspectors said: 'In some subjects, such as maths and history, some teachers are not quick enough to identify and address pupils’ errors and misunderstandings as they arise. At times, this means that some pupils make mistakes that go unchecked. The school should support teachers to use assessment in lessons consistently well to help pupils to learn as effectively as they should.'

Chair of governors, Philip Newton, said: "The school has been on an amazing journey since Mrs Clark’s appointment in 2019; we have become an integral part of the Haxby community, with every child having opportunities to achieve and engage with a wide range of experiences and opportunities."

The report can be read in full here.