A SCHOOL that was failing seven years ago is celebrating an “outstanding” inspectors report.

St Helen's Roman Catholic School in Shernhall Street, Walthamstow, was placed under special measures by school watchdog Ofsted in 2002 because the standard of education was not considered high enough.

The special measures were lifted in 2005 after an inspection showed the infant school was making good progress.

But a recent inspection concluded that is it now an ‘outstanding school, where pupils make excellent progress academically and in their personal development’.

Headteacher Jerard Durcan said staff, parents, pupils and governors are all delighted by the report.

He said: “It has been a team effort. We have had a strong leadership, not just with myself but by the deputy and governing body.

“We always make it a fun place, so behaviour is good and children enjoy the learning and see the reasons behind it. Staff are extremely dedicated, including support and office staff.

“I would like to say a big thank you to all staff, parents and others who have supported us. We are looking forward to continuing with improvements at the school.”

The school watchdog said the Catholic ethos “permeates all that the school does and underpins the excellent relationships in the school”.

It said standards are exceptionally high compared with similar groups nationally and outstanding considering English is a second language for many pupils and the proportion of pupils with learning difficulties is above average in the main school.

It attributed these successes with the school’s support for reading, in which teachers do much work with parents to help them understand how to help their child with reading at home.

Some teaching was graded as "outstanding" and teaching overall was graded as "good" throughout the school.