National Schools Commissioner pays visit to OSSMA
The National Schools Commissioner, Sir David Carter, was welcomed today by high-performing local academy, Ormiston Sir Stanley Matthews Academy (OSSMA).
The academy, which was rated "good with outstanding features" in its most recent Ofsted, is part of the Ormiston Academies Trust (OAT), one of the country's leading education providers. The visit recognised the important role the trust plays in education provision across the country.
The visit provided the opportunity for Sir David Carter to see first-hand the work the academy and trust are doing to transform educational opportunities and will feed in to the work he does leading communications between the Department for Education and the education sector.
Sir David Carter had the opportunity to see English, Maths, Humanities and Technology classes in action and meet some of the fantastic students and teachers at the academy, led by Principal Mark Stanyer.
OSSMA has consistently been rated the most popular school for parental choice in the city winning the title for the last three years. OSSMA and Roisin McGuire (St Joeseph's college) have been leading the way in Stoke for driving up standards in Maths, working with the local council and MP Tristram Hunt to build a Maths Excellence Partnership which has been praised by Ofsted Chief Sir Michael Wilshaw.
Sir David Carter, National Schools Commissioner said:
"OAT has a strong focus on both raising educational standards and giving students access to the kind of enrichment opportunities that all too often out of reach for the demographic the Trust serves. This commitment is evident at all levels and it has been an honour to see it in action today.
"It has been wonderful to meet the students and hear about the work that OSSMA is doing in Stoke to drive up aspiration, particularly in maths.
"It is always such a pleasure to spend time in academies and I look forward to seeing OSSMA continue to flourish over the coming years."
Mark Stanyer, Principal at Ormiston Sir Stanley Matthews Academy said:
"It was a real pleasure to be able to host Sir David Carter here today – we are very proud of our students and staff, and it was wonderful for them to show him all the great work that is being done at the academy.
"At Ormiston Sir Stanley Mathews, in common with all academies in the Ormiston family, we have the highest standards. We know that every student can succeed, no matter their background and this drives us to succeed."
Toby Salt, CEO of Ormiston Academies Trust said:
"I was delighted to host Sir David Carter at OSSMA today. It was a great opportunity to show Sir David the work that we are doing on the ground and the amazing opportunities open to our students throughout the trust.
"At all Ormiston schools we have a relentless focus on ensuring students have the chance to enjoy a top quality education alongside character building enrichment experiences, and we are proud to share our work as one of the country's leading education providers with the National Schools Commissioner."