STAFF and pupils at Worcester's last remaining infants' school are celebrating after achieving a glowing report from Ofsted.

Northwick Manor Infants School, Worcester, has been rated as a good' school by inspectors, who described it as having a "vibrant, confident and happy ethos".

The school received good' ratings in all six areas of assessment, including overall effectiveness of the school, personal development and well-being, and teaching and learning. Inspectors said pupils behave "exceptionally well and have positive attitudes" and said the headteacher provided thoughtful and effective leadership.

They said: "This is a good school, which is popular with parents and over-subscribed each year. There is a vibrant, confident and happy ethos, which is reflected in the pupils and the adults who work with them."

Northwick Manor Infants School could be combined with Northwick Manor Junior School to create one single primary school under current plans by Worcestershire County Council.

Headteacher Tessa Richardson said she was delighted with the report and said it reflected the hard work of teachers and pupils.

She said: "We are all so pleased with this report. It shows what hard work we have all put in to make this a good school. We work as a team and all work together to secure the best for the future. We work hard and play hard."

The report praised the teaching at the school and said pupils were encouraged to do their best in a very supportive atmosphere.

It said: "Classes are managed very effectively and routines are well established and understood by the pupils. There is a strong sense of fun and enjoyment around the school and the pupils greatly enjoy being with their teachers and other adults who help them." The only recommendations in the report were that it should refine and improve systems for tracking pupils' progress, ensure pupils' work is always matched to their different starting points and to develop more rigorous systems for monitoring and evaluation.

The Inspector's Report

WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

* Standards are high and nearly all pupils reach the levels expected for their age, with a considerable proportion doing even better than this.

* The pupils behave exceptionally well and they have very positive attitudes.

* Teachers and teaching assistants plan work which is mostly well matched to the pupils' different starting points.

* There is a strong sense of fun and enjoyment around the school and the pupils greatly enjoy being with their teachers and other adults who help them.

WHAT COULD BE IMPROVED

* Refine and improve systems for tracking pupils' progress and their achievement and set consistently challenging targets for improvement.

* Ensure that the pupils' work is always matched to their different starting points and that the more able pupils are sufficiently challenged in all that they do.

* Develop more rigorous systems for monitoring and evaluation and make sure that when teaching and learning is checked, feedback and coaching leads to improvement.

STAR RATINGS

Effectiveness: *** Achievement: *** Development: *** Teaching: *** Curriculum: *** Care and support: *** Leadership: ***