'˜This is a school Blackpool can be proud of' - union boss praised award-tipped Boundary

NAHT president Andy Mellor (L) and general secretary Paul Whiteman (R) pay a visit to Boundary Primary School to congratulate them on their recent TES award nomination for School of the Year. They are pictured with headteacher Suzanne Ashton.

Andy Mellor and Paul Whiteman’s visit to Boundary Primary School in Grange Park yesterday came after it was nominated for the Times Education Supplement’s Primary School of the Year award.

It was pipped to the top gong by Eldon Primary School in Preston, but, after beating 27,000 other schools to be shortlisted, Mr Mellor said: “This is a school that Blackpool can be proud  of, and so it should be.

“It was heart-warming to see the level of dedication. I visited about 10 years ago and it has been totally transformed since then. They may not have won the award, but for me they won because they are giving children on the estate every chance possible.”

The school receives additional funding for three quarters of its children to mitigate the impact of deprivation, Mr Mellor said, while it makes around 1,000 safeguarding referrals every year. It has also had 23 children from out of the area join since September.

Despite its challenges, it has seen a reversal in fortunes in recent years, from being rated ‘requires improvement’ in 2015 to ‘good’ last year.

That came amid a heavy focus on speech and language therapy, counselling, and improving attendance and behaviour, Mr Mellor, who is headteacher at St Nicholas Church of England Primary School in Marton, said.

He added: “There’s a huge range of challenges they have got that your average suburban schools don’t have.”