WITH a new headteacher starting at the school last month, the future looks bright for West Ashton Primary.

After a challenging year, which saw the primary placed into special measures by Ofsted, new head Nina Jeffries said she hopes to embark on a new chapter for the school by improving the quality of education given to pupils.

“I keep saying to everyone that it feels like I’ve been given a Christmas present in coming here because it is a wonderful place and I’m proud of my staffing team,” she said.

“Despite everything that has happened in the last few months, I am really confident to move the school forward and everyone is so committed and what is lovely is that I’m able to bring what I did at Aloeric Primary, who have also been through challenging times, to West Ashton.

“Being under the scrutiny of Ofsted is quite hard and so naturally we have had people be on the defensive but the staff and parents as well as the children have been so welcoming and wanted to work together.”

With 81 pupils spread across three classes, West Ashton Primary has been at the heart of the village for a number of years after the school was founded in 1846.Since then, it has remained rooted in its Christian values and only last week did the pupils take a trip across the ground’s adjoining field to West Ashton Church for a Harvest Festival service.

Ms Jeffries, who has introduced a weekly celebration assembly since taking on the role, added that she hopes to place more emphasis on the importance of early year learning both in and outside the school.

She said: “As a Christian school, we are modelling our behaviour on Christian values of sharing and support and while we have gone through some difficult times, we have had support throughout.

“We want children to leave West Ashton Primary with the skills that are getting them ready for the challenges in life and education is about developing all areas of children’s learning and recognising that all children have special needs in some way. We work actively and in partnership with the parents who are the first and best educators of children and so we try to support learning at home in any way we can. It is about empowering them to know reading to your child at home is absolutely key in encouraging your child to read themselves.”