A primary school in Harrogate has been rated ‘good’ by Ofsted.

St Robert’s Catholic Primary School was described by inspectors as a “welcoming, inclusive and diverse community”.

It was St Robert’s first Ofsted inspection for 14 years.

Read more

• New independent school in Harrogate toasts first Ofsted inspection
• Harrogate’s Grove Road remains a ‘good’ school, says Ofsted
• Moorside Primary School in Ripon rated ‘good’ by Ofsted

The report said:

“The Catholic values of the school are a central feature of its work.

“These values are reflected in the acts of kindness that pupils carry out in the school and in the community.”

The report says “everyone is valued” and “teachers and support staff care passionately about each child”.

The school was assessed as ‘good’ in all areas except early years provision, which was graded as ‘requires improvement’.

Inspectors said:

“In recent years, a large proportion of children have not developed the literacy, communication and language skills needed to make them ready for Year 1.”

St Robert’s Catholic Primary School in Harrogate.

Headteacher Jill Collins said:

“The report recognised that the school’s curriculum is increasingly ambitious and the school gives it careful thought.

“Education is an ever-changing journey on which we are privileged to accompany the children in our care.

“As a school, we are continually adapting to this landscape in order to provide children with opportunities to be the best they can be.

“We are grateful to the whole school community for their continued support in helping to make St Robert’s a place for children to be happy, resilient and forgiving learners.”

The 300-pupil school converted to become an academy school in 2021. It is now part of the Bishop Wheeler Catholic Academy Trust.

When its predecessor school, of the same name, was last inspected by Ofsted in May 2009, it was judged to be outstanding overall.

Parents interested in enrolling their child can email admin@st-roberts.n-yorks.sch.uk .

Schools in the Harrogate district are celebrating the Queen’s platinum jubilee ahead of next week’s half-term holidays.

Pupils have been making crafts, performing re-enactments and putting on performances to commemorate the Queen’s 70th year on the throne.

If you have images of jubilee activities at your school, send them to contact@thestrayferret.co.uk and we will add them to this article.

Harrogate Ladies’ College 

The Harrogate Ladies’ College held a special jubilee dinner and finished it off with a ceilidh.

Springwater School 

The sixth form students at the Harrogate school put on a opened their own jubilee bakery with home-made scones, cakes and jam.

The students also decorated the school in red, white and blue and had their own version of the Queen sat in the school.

St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

Pupils at St Peter’s have had a busy week celebrating the platinum jubilee.

This week Owl class held a tea party with a specially choreographed dance to perform alongside ‘Dancing for Wellbeing’ a local group of elderly residents who dance for their health and enjoyment.

The school had a full church service followed by an afternoon of craft making flags, keyrings and painting canvases and stones.

Years 3 and 4

Starbeck Primary Academy

Children dressed up in red, white, blue, purple and silver. They had a day making craft and artwork that was all dedicated to Her Majesty.

Scotton Lingerfield Primary School

Children at Scotton Lingerfield dressed up in red, white and blue and took part in craft activities this week.

Fountains Church of England Primary School

Fountains Church School has held a week of jubilee activities for its students.

The children danced and sang whilst decorating plates to keep as a momento of the platinum jubilee.

An afternoon tea was also held for all the parents with the children spending much of the morning preparing sandwiches and cakes for the adults to enjoy.

Upper Nidderdale Primary Federation – Glasshouses Community Primary, St Cuthbert’s C of E and Fountains Earth C of E Primary Schools

This week the three schools have been learning about the Queen’s reign and commemorated the event by burying a time capsule and planting a rose tree.

The children also performed a song, made crowns and painted portraits of the Queen.

Over the week, the schools invited parents in to enjoy tea and cakes.

Today, children across all three schools will come together to enjoy an afternoon tea at lunchtime.

Kirkby Malzeard Church of England Primary School

Children at Kirkby Malzeard School made crowns and decorated cakes to celebrate the jubilee.

Dacre Braithwaite Church of England Primary School

Pupils at Dacre Braithwaite Primary enjoyed a jubilee themed day yesterday with a variety of activities.

The children learnt about the significance of the Union Jack flag and to sing the National Anthem. They also made and decorated 96 jubilee buns and made their own crowns.

They did plan to have an outdoor street party but unfortunately the weather meant it had to be inside but headteacher, Jo Dobbs said it was still a “brilliant day”.

Western Primary School

Children from Western Primary School had their faces painted and got to dress up for the day today as they learnt about the Queen’s 70-year reign.

The students spent the morning learning about the jubilee and what the Queen has done during her reign.

Angelique Coatesworth, year 3 and four phase leader, said:

“We watched a clip of the original coronation and marvelled at the pomp and ceremony, especially the golden coach.  All the children were fascinated with our discussions on what life was like back when the queen was coronated at just 25 years old.

“We made some commemorative art of the queen’s face. The children worked very carefully on these. Our dress up winners each received a royal themed book. This was organised by our wonderful family and friends.”

Killinghall Church of England Primary School

Pupils at Killinghall Primary School held a coronation with a garden party and a musical concert.

Grewelthorpe Church of England Primary School

Students at the school held a coronation re-enactment using props and costumes they made themselves.

Andrew Breckon, year 5 and 6 teacher, said:

“We held it in the village church and then had a tea party back at school with our new ‘Elizabeth sponge’ which the children made too.”

Students from Grewelthorpe made their own costumes for the re-enactment.

St Robert’s Catholic Primary School 

The year 2 Starlings class at St Robert’s got their very own visit from the Queen.

Read more:

• Knaresborough to host history festival for jubilee weekend
• Harrogate youngster watches Leeds drama from bench…before sitting GCSEs today

Brackenfield School 

Brackenfield School is preparing for a jubilee showcase tomorrow with readings, music and performances by the children.

The first half will be led by the infants performing two original songs written by the school’s music director, Helen Leaf, and classic London-based songs such as Lambeth Walk.

The second half of the showcase will begin with a montage from the school’s junior choir, including musical numbers and readings, guiding the audience through the life of the Queen up to the present day.

Headteacher Joe Masterson said:

“The jubilee is a fantastic opportunity for us to hold an afternoon filled with delicious cakes and impressive entertainment, highlighting the wonderful and wide-ranging talents of our children. They have been rehearsing tirelessly, all eagerly anticipating their performances, and can’t wait to host our special guests.”

Moorside Primary School

Children at Moorside Primary School in Ripon were gifted special, wooden pennies from the Rotary Club of Ripon Rowels to commemorate the jubilee.

The pennies have been made by a team of workers at Jennyruth Workshops and have been gifted to every pupil at the 17 primary schools in the city and surrounding villages.

The school held a garden party, attended by a woman looking very much like Her Majesty, organised a Royal Bake Off and dressed in red, white and blue.

Headteacher Claire Rowett said:

“We’ve had a week of celebrations involving our children and staff and everybody was in a joyous jubilee mood, as we look forward to the the events being held in the city centre and residential streets.”

“As a prelude to the extended Bank Holiday weekend, we created a portrait gallery with pictures of the Queen drawn by pupils.”

The children, with Union Jacks in hand, prepare for ‘The Queen’s’ arrival

The Queen’ meets one of the pupils at Moorside Primary

Follifoot Church of England Primary School

St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School

St Joseph’s school celebrated on earlier this week with all the children dressing in red, white and blue and enjoying a street party on the playground and playing field.

Children and their families were invited to join the event. Children sang, shared foods, played party games and took part in a royal quiz.

Education officials have said there should be “sufficient primary places” in Bilton if Woodfield Community Primary School closes, even though most nearby schools are full.

A report to councillors today will recommend they approve beginning a consultation on closing Woodfield by December 31 this year at the earliest.

The report recommends the consultation is shortened from the usual six weeks to four weeks because of “the urgency of the position and the need to provide as much clarity as possible to parents before the summer holidays”.

It says parents and carers of the 37 pupils remaining at Woodfield will be asked to apply for the preferred school that they would like their child to transfer to in the event of closure, adding:

“Once the full picture of all preferences is known, the local authority would liaise with the schools regarding potential allocations, and seek to meet the highest stated preferences wherever possible.”

Read more:

• Woodfield school closure ‘an absolute disgrace’, says union
• Bilton community centre to offer free meals as cost of living hits hard

Woodfield has a capacity of 150 pupils — 113 more than it currently caters for. Many parents have moved their children amid the ongoing uncertainty.

Nearby schools full

Nearby Bilton Grange Primary School, Grove Road Community Primary School and Richard Taylor Church of England Primary School are all currently operating beyond capacity, the report says, while St Robert’s Catholic Primary School is one pupil below capacity.

Woodfield’s closure would therefore put pressure on nearby schools but the report to councillors at tomorrow’s North Yorkshire County Council children and young people’s service committee says:

“There are no significant housing permissions within the Woodfield school catchment area, although there are several housing developments underway or planned in neighbouring school catchment areas.

“If the closure proposal went ahead, there would be a reduction of 150 primary school places available in the local area.

“Given current forecasts, including the likely demand from new housing, and current patterns of parental preference, there would appear to be sufficient primary places available in the local area, should the closure of Woodfield school be approved, as overall birth rates are falling in Harrogate district, and pupils living in the Woodfield school catchment area already attend a wide variety of primary schools.”

The report says pupil numbers determine school funding and Woodfield is forecast to have a budget deficit of £97,000 this year and a cumulative deficit of £229,000 by 2023/24.

Future of site unclear

A decision on the future of the school site has yet to be made. The report says:

“The county council owns the school site, which also accommodates Bilton and Woodfield Community Library, Harrogate Bilton children and family hub, and Oak Beck House.

“Decisions about the future use of the school premises will be taken after the closure proposal has been determined.”

Woodfield was rated inadequate by Ofsted in 2020. It subsequently failed to find an academy sponsor and a proposed merger with Grove Road fell through this year.