A PRIMARY school which was put into special measures in 2008 has been praised by Ofsted.

Thameside Primary School, in Abingdon, went into special measures following a poor report by the schools inspectors in March 2008. Following another inspection in July 2009, it went from special measures – Ofsted’s most serious sanction – to being under a notice to improve.

Now a monitoring visit has found that the school is making good progress and headteacher Sally Crowther said she was confident it would be taken out of Ofsted categories at its next full inspection.

Ms Crowther said: “It’s unrecognisable from the school it was.

“Children enjoy their learning and there are hardly any behaviour issues at all.

“The teachers have always been extremely hard-working, but we now plan together much better and I think that really helps.”

The school initially went into special measures after being criticised for poor teaching and low standards at the end of Key Stage 2.

But following a recent inspection, inspector Cathie Munt praised well-planned lessons, good learning, skilful teaching assistants and an approach to curriculum planning which she said had “transformed provision and created a greater sense of community”.

She said: “Improvements in the quality of teaching, the rate of progress, curriculum provision and in the increased attendance of individual pupils indicate that the school is building well on its capacity to improve.”

The school will receive a full inspection in the next 12 to 18 months.

Ms Crowther said: “We are confident that we will be coming out of the category when they next inspect us.

“Although she did not tell us anything we didn’t know – we knew we had made good progress – it is nice to hear that confirmation from an outside body.”

The school has taken on a new, non-teaching assistant headteacher, which Ms Crowther said was having a positive impact She said that unusually, the school had not seen an impact on admissions after being placed in special measures.

She said: “We didn’t lose any parents at all, because they were very confident in the leadership of the school and I believe that’s a testament to the way the school is run.

“The children here are ready to learn, they are sponges who soak up knowledge and they are happy here.

“I believe when we come out of notice to improve, we will not just be satisfactory but we will have lots of good elements.”

At a recent parents’ evening, 90 per cent of pupils’ parents attended.