IT‘S all change for a Bury primary school as a new headteacher takes charge and youngsters can attend their nursery full time for the first time.

Kelly Morgan has taken the reins as headteacher at Woodbank Primary, in Brandleshome Road, and has vowed to overturn an Ofsted inspection which said the school “required improvement”.

The school has gone through a period of instability, after long-serving headteacher John Wood retired and his replacement had to leave due to ill-health.

But now Ms Morgan, who lives in Ramsbottom and has worked as a headteacher at a school in Salford for 10 years, says she hopes to steady the ship.

She said: “I’m loving it, and feel like I have been here for a while, not since April! The staff have been amazing, and within two days the school was buzzing.

“The staff, children and parents have made me feel really welcome.”

An Ofsted inspection in March stated that pupils were not making consistently good progress and that the quality of teaching needed to improve, but Ms Morgan said work is under way to counter this.

She said: “Everybody is on board with the Ofsted report, and we are working really hard to turn it around, and our long-term vision is obviously to make the school outstanding.”

However, the school’s Early Years provision was praised — the report said the quality of teaching is good and children make good progress.

The nursery is now offering 26 full-time places as well as part-time provision, with two members of staff from school moving into the nursery.

Claire Gilmore, currently the school’s head of Key Stage One, will take charge of the Early Years section. She hopes parents will return.

She said: “We hope parents will be impressed with the quality. Our numbers have been dropping and from research and talking to parents, it is generally because we couldn’t offer full time places.”

Ms Morgan, aged 43, said she hopes Ofsted will be impressed on their next visit.

She added: “I would hope when Ofsted come back that provision is rated as outstanding. I feel that the Early Years is a real strength of the school.”