A SCHOOL in the centre of the foot and mouth crisis has been ranked among the best in the country by the chief inspector of Ofsted.

Highampton Primary School was named in Ofsted chief Mike Tomlinson's annual report to Parliament as having an 'outstanding inspection report' following a visit by independent inspectors in July.

Only one other school in Devon and nine in the whole of the South West shared this accolade in the latest round of Ofsted inspections.

Inspectors gave Highampton full marks in practically all areas, especially in the quality of teaching and learning, the children's attitude to learning and each other, the support of parents, strong community links and the hard work and dedication by governors.

Headteacher Jill Bevis said it was a great privilege to work with such a skilful and dedicated staff group — from the teachers to the administrators and caretakers.

'Everybody works so hard for this school and there is a real sense of school support,' she said. 'It's so nice to have some positive news for the community because Highampton has been through a really demanding time.'

She said the 42 pupils at the school had been 'remarkable' in their resilience and fortitude throughout the foot and mouth crisis and the high ranking was also a real credit to them.

Some children were stranded on farms for up to two months and one teacher, who lived on a farm, had to stay with her grandmother outside the 'danger zone' for the duration of the crisis.

The headteacher said at the time no-one really knew how the disease was spread so every precaution had to be taken and the children had a great system of changing shoes when they arrived at school.

'The children and staff were fantastic but we have all come through it and now we are almost a year on from the first case of foot and mouth in this area,' she said.

The only key issue highlighted by Ofsted inspectors was one of accommodation and Mrs Bevis and her team are determined to find the extra funding to complete an £82,000 extension 'by hook or by crook'.

She said the building fund was currently standing at £69,000 and the school was eagerly awaiting news from Devon County Council to see if its bid to the 'Seed Challenge Fund' had been successful.

'We should know by the end of March so we are keeping our fingers crossed,' she said.