AN inner city primary school where most pupils speak little or no English when they start has been praised as one of the best in the district.

Farnham Primary School, on Stratford Road in Little Horton, has just been judged as outstanding in every category in its latest Ofsted report.

Inspectors visited the school last month, and the latest report says pupils showed "exceptional" progress and the school "oozed quality."

The school has 544 pupils and most are of Pakistani heritage. Almost all children speak English as an additional language.

Last year the school was presented with a national Pupil Premium Award for being one of the most improved in the country in terms of attainment and the progress of disadvantaged pupils.

In the latest Ofsted report, the school increased to moved from its 2011 'good' rating to 'outstanding.'

"Most pupils enter the school with skills, knowledge and understanding that is a year or two below that which is typical for their age," the new report said.

"For most, their English language skills are particularly limited on entry. Almost all pupils make strong and sustained progress throughout the age range so, by the time they leave school, most pupils are working at age-related standards or above and are well prepared for secondary school.

"The strong focus on oral language development, along with the highly effective early teaching of reading and writing, enables pupils who enter school with little or no English to catch up. By the time they leave school, the gap between the attainment of these pupils and pupils who speak English as their first language nationally is very small.

"Strong leadership has resulted in consistently improving outcomes in all phases and key stages since the last inspection.

"Farnham Primary School is a special place to be. The immense care shown by adults, and their attention to detail, can be seen clearly in the exceptional learning environment. Every nook and cranny is filled with stimulating and exciting resources, which ignite pupils’ interest."

Inspectors also praised the sports offered at the school, and the variety of extra curricular activities. Last year, the chief executive of the Arts Council Darren Henley visited the school to see how it encouraged children into art and music.

Head teach Richard Edwards said: "I am so proud of our children. It is wonderful to have Ofsted recognition that they are outstanding and that our school is outstanding.

"I thank our parents for being so supportive of our work with their children and our gifted staff for working so hard to make sure our children have the best possible teaching. It is our determination to continue to improve."

Michael Jameson, Bradford Council’s Director of Children’s Services, added: “This is great news for Farnham Primary School and the district.

"Pupils, staff, parents, Governors, the wider community and all those who have worked extremely hard to bring about this positive outcome should be very proud. A special mention should be noted of the outstanding leadership both at headship and by the Governing Body."