A PRIVATE school near Romsey has been given good marks by the Independent Schools Inspectorate.

Inspectors spent four days at Hampshire Collegiate School, at Embley Park, last November and they have concluded that it provides good and sometimes excellent standards of education for its 557 pupils.

Unlike Ofsted, ISI does not provide an overall rating for schools but does have ratings for different aspects of the school’s work which can be excellent, good, sound or unsatisfactory.

They reported that the quality of pupils’ achievements and learning is “good” and their knowledge and understanding across a wide range of subjects is also good.

Ten inspectors headed up by Richard Mannix were involved in the assessment.

Several categories of the inspection saw the school placed in excellent or outstanding bands. This included sports.

“Both senior and prep school pupils achieve high standards in a very wide range of activities. In the senior school, across and extensive range of sports, there is a high level of achievement with both regional and international representation,” reported the inspectors.

Heaping praise on the teachers the report adds: “Enthusiastic and passionate teaching enables pupils of all ages and abilities to enjoy their work and make good progress.”

Looking at what the school offers it pupils the report says extra-curricular provision is “excellent” and one its strengths.

“Across the whole school the pupils’ curricular experience is hugely enriched by a wide range of excellent extra-curricular activities with many pupils achieving a very high level,” adds the report.

Pupils’ behaviour was also praised by the report which described the pupils’ personal development as “excellent” as was leadership and management at the school.

Creative subjects such as art, music and drama were particularly strong across the senior and prep schools.

All categories of the early years’ (fives and under) section of the school were rated “outstanding” during the inspection.

School principal Mrs Emma-Kate Henry said the report is good news.

“I am delighted with the outcome of our recent inspection. I am lucky enough to work with a dynamic and supportive team,” she said.

“We are very proud that the Independent Schools Inspectorate endorsed our view that our pupils are confident in themselves and active because the relationships with adults here are built on levels of trust. As an entire school we aim to encourage academic ambition and staff are embracing a new direction and this has had a great impact in the classroom.”

Inspectors only had two points where there is need for improvement at the school.

These are to “enhance” the ways the school celebrates other cultures and to ensure that strategies aimed at challenging and developing more able pupils are firmly in place across the curriculum.