A PRIMARY school which was ravaged by a fire last year has been praised by the Government

after its latest results were released.

A blaze at Westleigh Methodist School last March, which was believed to have been caused by an electrical fault in the solar panels of the roof, ripped through classrooms and its library.

Mobile units were opened to cope with the loss of classroom space.

Leigh Journal:

The fire at Westleigh Methodist Primary School last March

Despite the disruption caused, the school has bounced back to score a ranking of "well above average" for its progress in the key areas of reading, writing and maths in its Key Stage 2 exams.

This rating places the Westleigh Lane school in the top three per cent in the country.

Education Secretary Damien Hinds and the Minister of State for School Standards Nick Gibb sent a letter of congratulations to head teacher Amy Burkes following the release of the results.

The letter states: “We want to equip every child with the fluency in reading, writing and mathematics necessary to prepare them for a successful secondary school education and beyond, and your school has provided this.

"Thank you for producing such high standards through your hard work and professionalism, and congratulations to you and your staff for all you have achieved."

Leigh Journal:

​The letter that was sent to the school

MP Jo Platt also sent a letter of praise to the school as well.

Head teacher Amy Burkes said: “In so many ways these results really sum up what this school is all about.

“We can’t deny that the start of the year came with its challenges.

"Seeing a large part of the school go up in flames is not an easy thing to deal with – particularly when you have to ensure that the children continue to receive the best possible standard of education.

“I am so proud of the children. They, alongside the rest of the community, worked so hard to ensure that our school remained open and our children continued to learn.

"It is fantastic that all our work has been recognised by those at the very top of Government. ”

CEO of Acorn Trust, which the school is part of, Julie-ann Hewitt, says the results shows the "talent" of the pupils and teaching staff.

She said: “What I am most impressed with is the level of consistency.

"Our pupils didn’t just excel in one area, there was progress across the board.

"This not only shows how talented our pupils and teachers are, but also the impact that our new curriculum offer is having.

"We have been working tirelessly to help ensure that children are really inspired and engaged by their lessons, and these results show that we are really moving in the right direction.”

The strength of Acorn Trust's partnership has also been acknowledged as playing a key role in the school's performance.

Mrs Hewitt added: “Collaboration is key to the trust.

"We are lucky to also have the Ofsted rated 'outstanding' Bedford Hall Methodist Primary School in our family of academies.

"The two schools have developed really strong links with one another, sharing best practice and innovative ideas.

"That is why the whole of the trust is so proud of what Westleigh has achieved.”