A SCHOOL for children with emotional and behavioural difficulties has been hailed ‘outstanding’ by government inspectors.

Ofsted, the education watchdog, praised teachers and pupils at Rossendale School, in Turn, near Ramsbottom, in a social care report published this week.

Head David Duncan said he was delighted with the assessment, as tougher grading criteria were introduced last September.

The school,at Moor Side Farm, off Bamford Road, has 63 pupils between the ages of seven and 15, and 54 staff.

Inspector Elaine Clare, who visited the school for three days in November last year, said the school’s seven residential boarders were making significant progress with their lives.

She said: “The senior leadership team and staff are passionate about the work they do, and pupils are central to all practice.

“Residential pupils are achieving outstanding outcomes in all areas of their development.

“They receive excellent levels of support that allow them to prosper socially, emotionally, physically, and educationally.

“Excellent links with other services that provide additional specialist input are in place.

“That is a great credit to you all,” added the inspec-tor Mr Duncan, who helped open the school in 1989, said: “Since the head of Ofsted introduced a tougher regime, what we had to show was constant progression to meet the new criteria.

“It’s like getting to the top of Mount Everest and then still having to go up further.

“To remain outstanding speaks volumes about the commitment of staff, pup-ils, and their families.

“We treat it as if being outstanding is not not good enough, to keep progress-ing.

“Our ultimate goal is the same as that of the children, and their families. We want to make a difference.

“These are some of the most complex and challenging children in the North West.”

The school recently received approval from the Department for Education to extend its age range up to 18-year-olds, to help with pupils’ transitions to further education colleges.