A primary school’s action plan, implemented after a poor inspection report, is just not good enough, says Ofsted.

Inspectors said that leaders at Cowlersley Primary School are not taking effective action to tackle areas which need improving.

And Ofsted also rapped Kirklees Council for dragging its heels, stating: “The level of challenge and support provided to the school in light of recent performance indicators has increased, but planned meetings to address the issues are not timely enough.

“Further work with governors to secure improved leadership capacity is urgently required so that the actions taken by the school lead to rapidly improving outcomes for pupils.”

The 240-pupil Main Avenue school was graded as 3-Requires Improvement a year ago. Levels of achievement, some teaching , teachers’ expectations of pupils, reading opportunities and leadership structure all came in for criticism.

The latest Ofsted monitoring report makes difficult reading for the school’s staff and Kirklees’ education experts. It says: “The school should take immediate action to:

Secure effective and stable leadership so that the monitoring and implementation of planned actions can be sharpened and carried out in a rigorous manner to accelerate the impact of planned improvements

Improve rapidly the rate of progress of all pupils so that they are ready for their next stages of education

Ensure the best practice seen in the school is shared so that there are uniformly higher expectations of pupils’ achievement across the school and this accurately informs the next steps in their learning.”

Headteacher Cate Speight said: “We are continuing to work with all stakeholders, including the local authority, to move the school forward. Our school has many strengths, including behaviour, the way children respect each other and the way they engage with their learning.

“Governors are aware of the challenges we face and we are all working together to ensure the best possible outcomes for all children.

“The report makes clear that effective learning takes place in many lessons. Our commitment is to achieve those same high standards consistently across the school.

“All of our work is geared towards achieving the very best for pupils and families, both now and in the future.”