INSPECTORS say a York primary school which was placed on special measures in the summer is making progress towards getting them removed.

Poppleton Road Primary School, whose former pupils include Business Secretary Dr Vince Cable, was described as “inadequate” following a visit by Ofsted inspectors in May.

They found it was failing to give pupils an acceptable standard of education, with teachers not ambitious enough to raise pupils’ attainment. Now the organisation has carried out a special further inspection to monitor progress, and a report by Inspector Joan Hewitt said there are clear signs of improvement.

She said: “The school is making reasonable progress towards the removal of special measures.”

“The teaching, the leadership of the school and the governing body have all been strengthened by new appointments, with teachers working on raising their expectations of pupils and making sure the tasks they give children have the right level of challenge.

“The determined headteacher has wasted no time in focusing the team’s attention on improving teaching.”

The inspector also said results in Key Stage 1 and 2 have shown a marked improvement, so that standards are now in line with national averages, with the exception of maths in Key Stage 2.

She said recent training and restructuring are also giving governors a clearer idea of what they need to do to challenge and support the school in maintaining the momentum of improvement, and external support from the local authority has been strong.

She also revealed that the school is in the early stages of considering whether becoming an academy might help improve it.

Headteacher Debbie Glover said she was “absolutely delighted” with the positive improvements Ofsted had seen during its visit in October.

She said: “These improvements are a result of the hard work, determination and support of the whole school community and the Local Authority.

“As always, our main focus remains on our pupils achieving the very best that they can.”