Expert head to aid failing school

A highly-rated headteacher has been brought in to aid a failing junior school put into special measures.

Tim Royle, of Reading's Highdown School, has been appointed executive head of Whitley Park Junior school.

The Basingstoke Road junior school was recently given a poor Ofsted report, which found low standards and badly focused leadership.

Mr Royle, a former Ofsted inspector, will help senior management and governors to improve standards.

Serious issues

He will spend one day a week at the school and will be able to use staff from Highdown to provide additional support.

Whitley Park's headteacher Dawn Cox will remain in charge of its day-to-day management.

John Ennis, the chairman of governors, said: "The governing body is pleased to welcome Tim Royle to work with them and the headteacher to address the serious issues highlighted in our recent inspection report."

The Ofsted inspection in May, the results of which has just been published, found that there had not been enough progress made since the last inspection and that standards were generally low.

The report also said that pupils were making insufficient progress and that the school's leadership and management were not sufficiently focused on standards.

Mr Royle said he had "every confidence" that he and Ms Cox would be able "to raise the standard of children's achievements".