THE community is rallying behind an under-fire primary school despite inspectors warning it is failing to improve.

Education watchdog Ofsted has banned Winter Gardens Primary School, on Canvey, from recruiting newly-qualified teachers after inspectors judged it was failing to make enough progress.

The school, in Hilton Road, was put into special measures after inspectors found it inadequate, but the acting headteacher, education authority and councillors believe a recruitment drive could turn around its fortunes.

Writing to parents after inspector Mary Rayner warned the school was not making enough progress towards the removal of special measures, acting headteacher Catherine Stalham said: “Unfortunately they deemed the school has not made enough progress since the last inspection.

“However, the report was positive about the actions that have been carried out since February half term.

“I feel very confident about our plans going forward and the commitment of the staff team.”

Mrs Stalham and a board of education experts, appointed after the previous governors were sacked in January, have been working tirelessly to appoint new teachers to the school.

Five teachers have left and four more are on sick leave.

In a report published yesterday, inspectors said standards remain low in almost all year groups, partly because teachers had failed to assess pupils properly in the past.

Mrs Stalham has created a plan to help teachers improve, but inspectors said it was too soon to see its impact.

Ms Rayner said: “Because, historically, leaders have not challenged poor teaching, there has been little improvement. Since you have taken up post, the rigorous actions you have taken have resulted in small improvements in the quality of teaching.

“However, there is still little that is good and much that requires further improvement.”

The South Essex Academy Trust, which sponsors Westwood Academy, in Hadleigh, has agreed to sponsor the school, which is bidding to become an academy, from July.

Winter Gardens councillor Neville Watson, whose children and grandchildren went to the school, said: “It doesn’t sound terminal to me. Anything like that can be turned around.

“When I was in the Army and had a bad batch of men, it was my job to turn them into fighting machines.

“The point is, the only way they can turn it around is to get the best teachers they can get, or at least a mixture.”