PRINCE Henry’s Grammar School in Otley is celebrating following their recent Ofsted report which describes the school, staff and students as ‘exceptional’.

As an ungraded inspection, Ofsted’s remit was to ensure that the Otley school remained a ‘good’ school, as last assessed in 2017. The two day inspection, carried out in December 2022, resulted in a positive outcome, as the report states that there is ‘enough evidence of improved performance to suggest that the school could be judged outstanding now in a graded inspection’. Therefore, Ofsted will re-inspect Prince Henry’s on the graded framework within a shorter timescale, where the evidence can be gathered for the school to be officially graded as outstanding.

The process took the views of parents/carers, staff and students into consideration, alongside observing teaching, social times and all aspects of day to day practice.

Highlights contained within the report were comments such as: “Staff have high ambitions for pupils. Pupils are polite and well mannered. Leaders value support they have from families. Pupils give their time to others and support one another. Pupils visit the local community and work with different groups to make a positive difference to the lives of others. Sixth-form students are strong role models. The personal development curriculum is thoughtfully designed to meet the needs of pupils at different stages. There is a calm and positive atmosphere in lessons. The extra-curricular offer matches the depth and breadth of the curriculum offered in the classroom.”

Headteacher, Sally Bishop, said: “We really were overwhelmed to hear the inspectors’ descriptions of what they had experienced in their two days with us, and are rightly proud of the respect, commitment, dedication and positivity demonstrated, which resulted in our school, staff and students being described as ‘exceptional’.

"There were many other accolades and acknowledgements of the improvements we are ambitious to make, which will put us on the right track for further success. As the Collaborative Learning Trust continues to grow, the strengths of Prince Henry’s Grammar School will continue to be a real asset to partner schools.

"As always, we are keen to continue to work on areas of focus to enable us to be even better. I hope you are as proud of our school, students and community as we are at the moment. There is certainly a lot to celebrate and share.”