INTERVIEW: Rapid improvement possible at Peterborough primary school rated '˜Inadequate' by Ofsted

The school was heavily criticised by Ofsted in a recent report, and Mr Lewis said the council had agreed with headteacher Anne Neary for her to take a break from the school, with consultant headteacher Brendan Plunkett brought in.

Mr Lewis said: “I’m disappointed we didn’t take more action to get involved with that school.

“What’s happened is I’ve brought another headteacher in, someone who is very experienced and has a proven track record and acumen.

“The report is disappointing, but it’s ‘serious weaknesses’ not ‘special measures’ which is discreetly different. What ‘serious weaknesses’ talks about is there’s capacity to improve that school rapidly.

“We’ve got to build on that. There’s some fantastic teachers at that school. There are some things that need to change - the report is right. We need to reflect on what we do and make sure this doesn’t happen again.

“But there are some real positive things happening in that school and I’m very hopeful for a decent set of results this year.”