A Primary school in Midsomer Norton is celebrating after securing a glowing report from inspectors.

After a two-day inspection by Ofsted in February, parents, pupils and teachers at Longvernal school are celebrating an overall ‘Good’ with three of the five areas rated ‘Outstanding’.

Ofsted called the primary school ‘a special place to learn’ that has boasted exceptional outcomes for personal development of their pupils. Other areas rated as Outstanding are behaviours and attitudes, which shone with a commitment to learning plus leadership and management, which secures an ambitious curriculum, inspectors said. 

The report recognises that the school is “one family”, stating that “pastoral support is exemplary”. Leaders are cited as being extremely ambitious for all pupils and Ofsted asserts that: “Pupils’ behaviour is excellent”.

Ofsted also comments that: “Leaders prioritise reading. Pupils’ and adults’ love of reading spreads throughout the school from Nursery to Year 6”; and there is a strong culture of reading for pleasure which starts in the early years.

Headteacher Karen Bazeley said: “We are extremely proud of the children and all of the team at the school who work hard to provide extensive opportunities for the children. Longvernal has been on a tremendous journey, growing significantly in size and popularity over the last few years. We have built on successive strong Ofsted reports and we boast our USP as a Forest School Accredited primary school. Our ‘F-O-R-E-S-T’ values of family, originality, respect, excellence, self-belief and teamwork permeate everything we do and make Longvernal a truly remarkable place.”

With much to celebrate, Longvernal school continues to be central to the local community.