A SCHOOL is celebrating after Ofsted inspectors said its maths department was ‘outstanding’ and will be used as a beacon for others to follow.

St Christopher’s CE High School, in Accrington, welcomed inspectors to its classrooms because Ofsted wanted to learn more about the secrets behind its results.

Inspectors, who targeted the school to learn more about ‘best practice’, said they had gained ‘valuable information’ from observing the school.

Ofsted said watching maths lessons at St Christopher’s would contribute to the standards they set for national evaluation, and reporting.

The school saw the proportion of students passing GCSE maths in 2012 with grades A* to C hit 84per cent, compared with a national figure of 70per cent.The proportion of students gaining the highest A* and A grades is also one of the highest in the country.

Lead inspector Paul Chambers said: “The overall effectiveness of mathematics is outstanding.

“Students’ attainment is high, and more students are making the expected progress than is the case nationally.”

His report said early results for 2013 were stronger overall than those for 2012, and showed girls and boys did equally well.

Over time, disabled students and those with special educational needs also make outstanding progress.

He added: “Students show very positive attitudes to their work. They tackle problems readily and persevere when they encounter difficulties.

“They are ready to ‘have a go’, even when they are unsure and, as a consequence, they learn from their mistakes.”

Mr Chambers described teaching in mathematics as outstanding, as well as the curriculum.

He said: “The last three years show high standards being maintained and, in some areas, improved.

“Teachers work well as a team and value the opportunity to share ideas and try out new teaching materials.

“While teachers share a philosophy of what constitutes good practice and share common approach-es to teaching particular topics, this does not come through strongly in the departmental documentation.”