Glowing report for Drumaness school

Glowing report for Drumaness school

14 March 2013

CHRIST the King Primary School in Drumaness has received a glowing inspection report from the Department of Education.

The report highlights the school’s many strengths including its caring and inclusive ethos, the quality of the teaching, the leadership of principal Mrs. Grainne Fay and the commitment of staff to provide a wide range of extra-curricular activity.

The glowing report has been welcomed by Mrs. Fay and senior members of the school’s Board of Governors, including its chairman Mark Morgan and his deputy, Fr. Desmond Loughran.

The Department of Education report makes reference to the “exemplary behaviour” and evident motivation of the children to succeed in their learning through their active participation in a wide range of extra-curricular activities.

Elsewhere, the report highlights the strong support of parents and the wider community, including the very good curricular and pastoral links formed with local post primary schools.

Education inspectors say the majority of parental responses indicated very high levels of satisfaction with the provision within Christ the King Primary School.

In particular, parents highlighted the caring, friendly learning environment and the approachability and hard work of both the teaching and non-teaching staff.

Inspectors also acknowledged the role of the school’s classroom assistants. They said: “The classroom assistants contribute significantly to promoting and maintaining a pleasant, stimulating working environment for the children.”

The quality of the arrangements for pastoral care in the school was also

acknowledged in the report, with the Inspectorate commenting on the fact that children spoke very positively about the school; that they felt happy and secure in school and knew where to seek help if they had a concern.

Notable strengths acknowledged by the Inspectorate included the standards attained by the children in English and Maths which are above the average for similar schools and the work to help further raise standards.

The report said the Drumaness school has an effective training programme for staff development and accesses appropriate training in order to promote “very good practice in learning and teaching.”

South Eastern Education and Library Board chief executive, Mr. Gregory Butler, said Christ the King Primary School is in a strong position to move forward to even greater success. He said the school has demonstrated its capacity for sustained self-development.