THE LEADER of a school trust has said he's "encouraged" following one of his school's latest Ofsted inspections.

Great Malvern Primary School on Lydes Road, Malvern received its first inspection since 2019 in September, achieving mixed results across the report's five key criteria.

The school, which is part of Mercian Educational Trust - a multi-academy trust formed of six schools - received the results on October 22.

CEO of the Mercian Educational Trust, Dafydd Lawday, said: "Whilst we are disappointed that inspectors found some areas which require improvement, we are encouraged by the good areas highlighted.

"This includes our broad and balanced curriculum, strong subject knowledge of staff, improvements in reading and our provisions to enhance pupils' personal development."

"We are also proud that the inspectors commented that our pupils were a delight - welcoming, friendly and wanting to learn."

Across five key areas, Ofsted rated Great Malvern Primary School 'Good' in behaviours and attitudes and personal development, while leadership and management, early years provision, and quality of education were rated 'Requires improvement' by the education watchdog.

Ofsted's notes that "standards have fallen" since the school's last inspection, however it adds that, "recently appointed leaders have introduced strategies to stem the decline of standards."

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Mr Lawday said: "We were pleased that inspectors recognised areas of development had a focused plan in place to enhance curriculum coherence and clarity and support our pupils learning.

"These ongoing improvements will make an impact on our pupils learning and we look forward to sharing progress with inspectors when they return in due course."

Ofsted's report remarks that "staff have a strong subject knowledge to support delivery of the curriculum" while "reading is now a priority," noting the "effective teaching" achieved there.

Mr Lawday added: "Mercian Educational Trust and Great Malvern Primary School are committed to high standards and providing pupils with skills to thrive in their next phase of education."

As of September 2024, Ofsted no longer delivers an overall rating for graded inspections of state-funded schools.

Ofsted will set out dates for schools' next graded inspections from September 2025, where a new inspection framework will be put in place.