A SCHOOL that has been under the spotlight in the last year after the mass resignation of governors has been praised by Ofsted.

Richmond School had a 24-hour notice inspection last week triggered by concerns about the school - but Her Majesty’s Inspectors judged the school’s leadership and management, as well as behaviour and safety, to be good.

Ahead of the publication of the report on inspection, Ofsted sent a letter to headteacher Ian Robertson to endorse the management of the school, and praised its focus on “improving what is already a good school”.

Inspectors said leaders and managers, including the school’s interim executive board (IEB), know the strengths of the school and what the key priorities are.

They said despite recent uncertainty and change, they “remain focused on ensuring students are helped to reach their potential”.

Inspectors said the IEB has a wealth of knowledge and experience, and had been proactive in demonstrating school priorities, giving appropriate levels of challenge and support, setting clear performance management targets for the headteacher and demonstrating a thorough understanding of their strategic role.

North Yorkshire County Council was also praised in the letter for the advice and support it had given Richmond School – and also for “rightly highlighting” it could have done more to inform parents and the community about the reasons for issuing a warning notice to the former governing body.

The overwhelming majority of students, said Ofsted, are properly prepared for school and ready to learn. They are polite and welcoming to visitors. “Many were keen to tell inspectors that they were proud of their school”.

Areas for development, according to Ofsted, include refinement of the school’s consequence system and consultation with staff and students about developing further ways of rewarding good behaviour and attitudes to learning.

Chairman of the IEB , Colonel Stephen Padgett said: “The independence and rigour that the inspectors have brought as experts is invaluable to Richmond school.

“Their approval is an opportunity for the school to move forward and to continue to develop excellence in education that these students deserve.

“The immediate task is to establish a shadow governing that can work with the IEB as the next step to full governance.”

“This is a wonderful outcome for the school," said Mr Robertson. “I want to thank and congratulate students, staff and parents who have pulled together in recent months and kept their focus on the most important task in hand –maintaining the highest quality of teaching and learning.”

Richmond councillor Stuart Parsons said: “The letter confirms what we already know that large elements of the school are good, the teachers are fantastic and the pupils are remarkable and work really hard.

“However, I will be interested to see the full report.”