INSPECTORS have again praised a New Forest academy as a place where students are “thriving and progressing significantly”.
Ringwood School maintained its ‘good’ rating by education inspectorate Ofsted following two visits in mid-November last year – its first visit to the school since 2017.
Leadership, curriculum standards and pupil support were all lauded as driving forces behind the secondary school’s success, while some room for improvement on how bullying is dealt with was noted by inspectors.
The latest Ofsted report said: “High standards and expectations and strong relationships with teachers enable all pupils to achieve well. Many stay on to the sixth form.
“The diverse sporting, artistic and dramatic opportunities develop pupils’ confidence and enrich their overall learning experiences.
“Leaders and teachers are enthusiastic and committed to enrich pupils’ learning with many diverse and cultural extra-curricular opportunities, including trips abroad. These opportunities enhance pupils’ social and cultural development very well.
“They help pupils to learn about wider British society and to develop an understanding of the world outside their own experience. Pupils relish the many opportunities they have to research and debate current issues.”
A minority of pupils and parents were said to not think that bullying was dealt with properly. Inspectors said school leaders must ensure thorough communication so all pupils and parents are confident that any worries about bullying are addressed appropriately and successfully.
One parent, however, told Ofsted: “Ringwood is a fantastic school, my children are thriving and progressing significantly academically and socially.”
Last year, Ringwood School saw 65.4 per cent of its sixth form achieve top grades of A*, A or B for A-level results.
For GCSE results, 28 per cent of all Ringwood grades awarded were at grade 7 -9 and 72 per cent of grades were considered strong passes at grade 5-plus.
Headteacher Leanne Symonds, who has been at the helm since 2016, said at the time: “Despite these unprecedented challenges our students have shown the utmost determination and resilience and have reaped the rewards.”
In total, 1,561 pupils are on the school roll at Ringwood, 270 of whom attend the sixth form.
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