A December Ofsted inspection has seen Woodlea Primary School in Whitehill downgraded from ‘good’ to ‘inadequate’.

The chair of Woodlea’s board of governors, Jackie Jones, said: “Given our previous rating of ‘good’, we were understandably disappointed to be judged as ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted after our latest inspection.

“However, we were pleased to have been judged ‘good’ in the areas of ‘behaviour and attitudes’ and ‘personal development’, and that inspectors noted the strengths in our curriculum and the effectiveness of our safeguarding procedures.

“We respect the overall findings of the report and are determined to rapidly turn around the current rating, working closely alongside the local authority.

“Indeed, an action plan is already in development to address the challenges raised, and we will continue to keep parents regularly informed about our ongoing progress.”

The headteacher at the time, Jo Mumford – who accepted the role in September 2020 at the height of the Covid pandemic – was off sick when the Ofsted inspectors arrived.

She returned to help them, but was so unwell she had to go home again.

Charlotte Faithful has since been appointed interim head.

Talking about Jo Mumford, Woodlea said in a statement: “With regards to the headteacher, it would not be appropriate to discuss individual staff so we have no comment to make.”

The Ofsted report is yet to be made public.