When Spring Common School was inspected in November 2006, it performed so poorly that Ofsted had no choice but to apply special measures – a status administered to only the most severely underachieving schools and colleges.

But following a visit last month, inspectors removed the school from special measures, citing headteacher Kim Taylor's leadership and hard work as the inspiration behind the turnaround.
The inspection report reads: "Her Majesty's Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires special measures. The overall effectiveness of Spring Common is satisfactory, with a growing number of elements that are good.

"The headteacher provides the school with good, clear leadership and she has worked tirelessly to provide the school with much-needed direction and focus which has resulted in significant improvement. She is well supported by a dedicated team of middle and senior leaders, who have grown in confidence and competence and make good use of their specialist skills and knowledge."

The behaviour of the pupils was also commended in the report which said: "The school is a calm, pleasant and inclusive environment in which pupils are well cared for and feel safe.
"Pupils' moral and social development is especially strong and relationships between staff and pupils are very positive."
Spring Common School on American Lane, Huntingdon, caters for around 150 pupils between two and 19, most of whom have severe learning or behavioural difficulties.

Headteacher Kim Taylor was delighted with the school's transformation but emphasised the important contribution from all of her members staff.
She said: "Everyone at the school is very, very pleased about the results of the report. Since we were put on special measures there has been a lot of work to do and it really has been a team effort."
The report also highlighted areas in which the school could improve, such as ensuring that learning outcomes for each pupil are firmly based on assessment information and improving the quality of pupils' learning in the foundation stage.

>> You can read the report in full by visiting www.ofsted.gov.uk