STAFF and students have welcomed their Forest secondary school being lifted out of special measures by the education watchdog.

Dean Academy head teacher Tom Beveridge said the Ofsted ruling following a fifth inspection in 18 months in November showed the Lydney school was “improving rapidly”, and initiatives to improve standards were “securing sustainable gains”.

The school was placed in special measures in November 2015 after Ofsted rated it “inadequate”.

But since the arrival of Mr Beveridge the following year it has turned a corner, with inspectors impressed by the rapid and sustainable improvements made in the last year.

The report says “a culture of aspiration has now been established” and “the quality of teaching is improving quickly.”

As a result, student progress is “improving rapidly”, while senior leaders’ “self-evaluation of the school’s performance is accurate and plans for improvement are appropriate”, with leadership and management rated “good”.

Mr Beveridge has been “successful in changing the culture of the school”, and “staff and parents believe the school is well led” and that “the school’s leadership is now secure”.

Ofsted had previously criticised the quality of leadership and teaching, attendance, personal development, behaviour and welfare, with too few pupils achieving five good GCSE, but last summer saw a marked improvement in GCSE results.

Mr Beveridge said: “The report confirms that The Dean Academy is improving rapidly and the measures we have implemented are securing sustainable gains; we know our school well, and target areas in need of improvement rigorously, and with success.

“The staff and students of the school should be proud of what they have achieved so far. We will continue to work tirelessly to make further improvements to the school, but the whole community should feel confident that they are part of an improving school.

“We know there are still things to do, and the targets Ofsted have set us are fair and meaningful.”

The report also notes that “teachers are well motivated and growing in confidence”, which has resulted in teaching being “markedly better” and “improving quickly”, with staff willing to develop their skills.

Ofsted also states that the “school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good”, while “many parents comment that the new leadership of the school has had a strong positive impact on pupils’ behaviour and self-discipline”.

Dean Academy joined the Athelstan multi-academy trust of schools in March 2015, and Ofsted noted that it had “played a pivotal role in strengthening leadership and management, at all levels in the school, over the last two years”.

Trust chief executive Tim Gilson said, “This report represents a great achievement for all the staff at The Dean Academy.

“The Athelstan Trust was founded in order to raise educational standards for all schools within the trust and it is wonderful to see it happening at The Dean Academy.”

The report also says the “school governing body is now a strong, highly skilled and committed local group”, which had grown rapidly in the last two years, while the current chair was “providing continued strong leadership.”