PUPILS at a Canvey school are celebrating after seeing significant improvements in their latest Oftsed report.

Inspectors from the education watchdog visited Castle View School in July for the first time since the reopening of their new £28million in Foksville Road.

In a glowing report, the school was classified “good” – the second best rating – which represents a significant step up from the last report in 2009 which deemed it “satisfactory”.

Inspectors praised the standards of teaching as good and in some cases as outstanding as most teachers pay “careful attention to planning interesting lessons that enable students to build their learning step by step.”

They described the school as a “happy and harmonious community where students feel safe and valued” and said behaviour was good and at times outstanding.

The report also stated the school was “enhanced by a wide range of out-of-school activities and visitors that help to widen students’ horizons.”

Inspectors said the school could be outstanding if improvements were made to absence levels, marking consistency and lessons made harder to challenge more able students.

The new school was officially opened in September last year on the site of the former Furtherwick Park School, offering places for as many as 1,200 places for pupils ages 11 to 16 years.

Its facilities include numerous science super-labs, 60 classrooms grouped in subject clusters and a three- storey open plan atrium, with a stylish central staircase.