A RURAL school has received praise for its high standard of achievement in reading and mathematics in the 2017 Key Stage Two assessments.

The minister of state for school standards, Nick Gibb MP, congratulated Owslebury Primary School, near Winchester, for its assessment success which sees the school take its place amongst the country’s top one per cent of primary schools in attainment for reading and mathematics.

In a letter to Owslebury’s headteacher Wendy Smith, Mr Gibb said: “I would like to congratulate you, your staff and your pupils on your schools very high standard of achievements in reading and mathematics in the 2017 Key stage Two assessments.”

He added: “We want to ensure that every child has the necessary fluency in reading and in mathematics to prepare them for a successful secondary education and beyond, and your school has provided this to all your pupils.”

Headteacher Wendy Smith said: “We are delighted with these results which are testament to the commitment and the hard work of all our children and our staff. The results reflect the high standards that we aim for here at Owslebury, not only academically but in all areas of school life.

“Our school values of aspiration, respect, nurture, resilience and collaboration are at the heart of all we do enabling us to provide the very best education for all our children.”