A WITNEY primary school which was last year rated as one of the worst in the country has turned its fortunes around.

Tower Hill Community Primary School, in Moor Avenue, was the joint fourth worst out of England’s 14,812 primary schools last year.

Just 22 per cent of its 11-year-old pupils reached the expected Level Four grade in English and maths at Key Stage Two.

But this year 65 per cent of the pupils made the grade.

The Government’s target for schools is 60 per cent.

New headteacher Tracey Smith, who took over in September, said: “We are working incredibly hard to build on the results this year.

“We cannot guarantee it because it depends on the cohorts, but we are expecting slightly higher results this year and the year after that should be even better.

“We are maintaining the rigorous application to raising the standards.

“But at the same time we will be introducing a creative curriculum to make it stimulating and interesting for children.”

She said the new-style curriculum, starting next term, will include an activity where pupils will be transported to a desert island and have to form a government and draft laws. The hall will be turned into an airport departure lounge for the exercise.

Ms Smith said she also planned to work on instilling values such as respect into the children, and next year provide a full-day nursery to support parents who work.

The school currently only has a part-time nursery.

Ms Smith joined the school from Bladon Primary School, where 100 per cent of the pupils reached the Key Stage Two grade this year.

She said: “I applied for the job because I was struck by the warmth of the atmosphere at Tower Hill, and by the hard work of the children and staff.

“I just thought wow, what a fantastic school. I could not work out how it appeared to be so great when I had heard all those things about it.”

She said last year’s poor results had largely been because more than half the pupils who were being assessed had special needs.

Ms Smith now hopes to bring back some of the families in the catchment area who have decided to send their children to other Witney schools.

She said: “I think they are missing out on a very good quality education and very caring and nurturing staff – so much so that my own son now comes here. Tower Hill is not the school people think it is.”