STAFF and pupils are celebrating a ‘magnificent achievement’ to be named in the top one per cent of primary schools in England.

The secretary of state for education and the minister of state for school standards have penned a letter to the headteacher of Amport Church of England Primary School, congratulating her on the school’s successes.

The praise comes after every Year 6 pupil in the last academic year reached age-related expectations in reading, writing and mathematics combined, while 46 per cent of these children achieved this at ‘greater depth’, the highest record across Hampshire.

The school, with around 80 pupils aged four to 11, is now one of the top-ranked sites in England.

The letter from Damian Hinds MP and Nick Gibb MP arrived in the post this month, with staff, students and parents alike pleased to receive the news.

Within the letter from Westminster, Mr Hinds and Mr Gibb wrote to headteacher Bernadette Fleet: “We would like to congratulate you, your staff and your pupils on the very high standard of achievement demonstrated in the Key Stage 2 assessments last year.

“Thank you for producing such high standards through your hard work and professionalism, and congratulations again to you and your staff for all you have achieved.”

Mrs Fleet said: “This is a magnificent achievement and is testament to the children’s sheer hard work, throughout their time at Amport.

“It also reflects the excellent teaching across the board and is representative of the high standards achieved in all areas of the curriculum.”

She added: “We are extremely proud of all the children, and are immensely grateful for all the support provided by the whole school community, including our staff, governors and parents.”

The school was last fully inspected by education watchdog Ofsted in February 2012, in which it was rated as ‘good’. In 2017 it was revisited by inspectors who praised the school.