Good school puts £50,000 on house prices

Margaret Ryall says there is more to a school than test results

By Sean Coughlan

The headteacher of the only school in London to score maximum marks in this year's primary school tests is planning to celebrate in a way that you might not expect.

Margaret Ryall, head of Our Ladies of Victories in Putney, south-west London, says she is going to take the phone off the hook.

Last year, when the school also had a 100% pass rate in English, science and maths, the headteacher says that she was deluged with inquiries from parents across London looking for places.

House prices can be pushed up by schools performing well in league tables

The school, teaching 185 pupils from four to 11 years old, is a traditional, Roman Catholic primary, with religious statues on the staircase and walls decorated with art work.

There should also probably be a small statue of Margaret Ryall in the offices of local estate agents, as such is the keenness of the hunt for places in good schools in London that property values in the catchment area have risen by as much as £50,000.

Although house prices in the leafy streets around the school are high, Our Lady of Victories still serves a mixed community, with affluent streets rubbing alongside council estates.

The presentation of art work is considered important at the school

But how has Margaret Ryall managed to ensure that all the pupils in her school manage to make the grade, when so many pupils in other schools in London and elsewhere have failed?

Her approach is unashamedly formal, with an emphasis on reading, writing and maths. Although wanting to ensure a welcoming atmosphere, she says that the school has a strong sense of discipline.

Children line up quietly and have to wear uniforms, homework is set from the earliest years and written and art work has to be well presented as well as accurate.

All of these factors have a cumulative effect, says the headteacher, carrying "hidden messages" about what children are expected to achieve.

The school has also a well-established process of assessing children when they arrive at school and identifying any pupils who need extra help, making sure that their progress is tracked and that no one is left behind.

The school's status as a Roman Catholic school also makes a contribution, she says, adding "a heightened sense of community. It shows that the parents and school are committed to something".

In terms of allocating places, Our Ladies of Victories gives first priority to practising Catholics, with a maximum of 15% of its places going to non-Catholic pupils.

Tests create bureaucracy

But the school's success has not made Margaret Ryall an unqualified supporter of the league tables. The paperwork involved in administering the tests can take time that should be given to teaching, she says.

She is also concerned that so much attention is paid to "the raw data" of tests, compared to the breadth of a school's work with children of many different abilities.

"Even if we didn't get all the children through the tests I hope parents would still want to send their children here," she says.

There is also pressure put upon the children taking the tests. Although in the past two years all the school's pupils, including those with special needs, have passed in all three areas of testing.

But she says there are children lower down the school whose problems mean they are unlikely to reach the required grades - and these pupils are already aware that they are set to lose the school's 100% record.

Speaking from the perspective of a school that is clearly identified as a success, Margaret Ryall also takes issue with the popular impression that standards in schools need to be improved.

"I get angry with politicians who talk about standards when they often have no idea about what it means to be standing in front of a class of stroppy 11-year-olds."

"What grieves me most is that teachers put so much of themselves into their schools and pupils and that they get such little recognition or praise in return."