A SECONDARY school has lost its outstanding rating but still received high praise, with the principal saying it will ‘relentlessly’ aim to improve.

Magna Academy in Poole has been confirmed as being a ‘good’ school by education watchdog Ofsted – just under five years since it was deemed ‘outstanding’.

However, the school said the judgement matched its own self-evaluation of the academy under the new Ofsted framework.

The inspection recognised the ambition of the school’s “strong academic curriculum” under its principal, Natasha Ullah, and praised the high expectations of the staff, the pupils’ courteous behaviour and their sense of community.

There were two areas which inspectors suggested for future development.

At Key Stage 3, it was felt some pupils’ recall of key knowledge could be improved, and attendance by some disadvantaged pupils should be raised.

At the time of inspection in March, 926 students were on the school roll, 58 of whom attended the sixth form.

Inspectors rated both the sixth form and students’ personal development as ‘outstanding’.

Bournemouth Echo: Natasha Ullah, principal of Magna Academy in Poole.Natasha Ullah, principal of Magna Academy in Poole.

In a report on the 2021-22 academic year, Ofsted said more than four-fifths of ‘outstanding’ schools inspected the previous year lost their coveted top grade after their exemption from inspection was removed.

308 of the 370 previously exempt schools that had a graded inspection were downgraded, equating to around 83 per cent.

School principal Natasha Ullah said: “The report is a testament to the hard work and commitment of the staff, students and families in the Magna community.

“I am incredibly proud to be principal of an academy where students have a strong sense of community, take an active part in the life of the academy and are respectful to both staff and peers. It continues to be a privilege to work with staff that are proud of the academy and amongst leaders that act with integrity and have high expectations.

“Looking ahead, it is imperative that we continue our relentless drive to continuously improve. Students will remain at the heart of everything we do and we will continue to drive forward to raise the aspirations, progress and achievement of every individual child who is a member of our academy.”