TEACHING at Witchford Village College is good across the board, pupils behave well and lessons are engaging.

That’s the verdict of inspectors from Ofsted who this week rated the school as good in all areas.

In his report, lead inspector James McAtear, said: “Teaching is good because teachers plan lessons that take account of students’ different abilities and use how much the students already know in planning learning.

“Teachers are enthusiastic about their subjects but are also committed to making sure students learn to the best of their ability. The quality of teaching in English and in some mathematics lessons is particularly effective.”

The four-strong team of inspectors said that progress made by pupils between Years 7 and 11 compared favourably with trends seen nationally and that there had been marked improvement in results in GCSE exams.

There was also praise for pupil behaviour, with inspectors saying: “Students behave well in lessons. This is because the school has strengthened its systems for dealing with poor behaviour and students are clear on what is expected of them.

“The vast majority of teachers manage behaviour skilfully and are able to maintain positive relationships with students. Attitudes to learning are usually good.”

In order to make the step up to outstanding however, the school will need improve mathematics results for what inspectors described as “less-able” boys as well as making sure students apply what they are learning.

The report noted: “The school can make the quality of teaching outstanding by ensuring that the methods teachers use always provide enough opportunities for students to be active in applying what they are learning to their own work instead of being passive in lessons.”

The village college, in Manor Court Road, became an academy in October 2011 and is a specialist sports college.