A WISBECH school has been branded as “inadequate” by Ofsted and placed into special measures.

Cambs Times: Ramnoth school. Wisbech.Ramnoth school. Wisbech. (Image: Archant)

Ofsted inspectors criticised the quality of teaching at Ramnoth Junior School and stated the governors had failed to maintain standards.

In 2011, the school met the government’s current floor standard, which sets the minimum expectation for pupils’ attainment and progress.

The report said: “Standards are low and have been falling since the previous inspection. Pupils do not make enough progress because too much teaching is inadequate or requires improvement.

“Teachers do not expect enough of their pupils and too often plan work that is too hard or too easy. Time is wasted in those lessons where teachers talk too much.

“In some classes, pupils rarely read to their teacher so do not get enough guidance on how to improve.

“Pupils lack basic numeracy skills. Many Year 6 pupils are about two years behind where they should be and have a limited understanding of how to solve problems or carry out simple calculations.”

Inspectors revealed deficiencies in the way the school tackles disciplinary issues.

The report said: “Pupils do not always feel safe at school because they lack confidence in the way that the school

tackles bullying.

“They do not feel that all teachers listen to them when they have worries and rely on the senior leadership team to ‘sort things out.’

“The school is not diligent enough in recording how it tackles bullying incidents.”

The school’s governors were slammed for not having done enough to drive improvements at the school.

The report said: “Governors have not put enough pressure on the school to improve quickly.

“Until recently, they had an unrealistic view of how well the school was doing because they did not do enough to check things for themselves.”