STRUGGLING Court Fields Community School in Wellington has been put in special measures after a damning OFSTED report.

Inspectors rated the school as 'inadequate' - but bosses have vowed to bounce back.

In a report published yesterday (January 15), inspectors said leaders and governors at the Mantle Street school have “not done enough to eliminate weaknesses” from the previous examination two years ago.

They also said GCSE results are not high enough in core subjects maths and science, while students do not do as well as they should because there is too much “weak teaching.”

The school will now be placed in special measures as those responsible for leading or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure “necessary improvement,” the report said.

Following the findings, head teacher Elaine Faull said: “We were expecting significant improvement this year due to the actions we have taken, but OFSTED, although recognising that we had made improvements were unwilling to accept our changes without hard evidence of results.”

The report, compiled from November's visit, acknowledged that the school had made changes to teaching since the previous inspection but said they've yet to make a “noticeable impact” and it was too soon to see the results.

It also highlighted good work in English lessons and said students feel safe in the school.

Mrs Faull added: “If they visited the school six weeks later I am sure the outcome would have been more positive.”

There has been some better news for the school.

Year 11 students are this week celebrating GCSE results from November's maths exam, with 53% achieving a grade C or higher.

Teachers are now hoping the results will rise further by summer and predict at least 68% A*-C grades.

To read the full OFSTED report, click here.

KEY FINDINGS:

The achievement of pupils is inadequate: Many students do not make expected progress (one quarter of parents who responded to questionnaire were concerned about this), but students' literacy skills are being well developed.

The quality of teaching is inadequate: In weaker lessons, teachers do not show knowledge of students' previous learning to make sure work is set at the right level, but where teaching is good and better, teachers make sure students work together.

The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement: The school has taken action to improve behaviour with a new policy but it is not yet good because the management of behaviour in class is not consistent.

The leadership and management are adequate: The drive for improvement is too slow but new 'faculty reviews' are in place. However, they are having a limited effect because they are at a very early stage.