The dramatic turnaround in the fortunes of a North Yorkshire school rated as inadequate by inspectors has been praised by Richmond MP Rishi Sunak.
Mr Sunak visited Richmond Church of England Primary School and Nursery School to talk to pupils, staff and governors about the progress made since an Ofsted inspection in 2015 plunged the school into special measures.
Inspectors criticised pupils' behaviour, declining standards and poor leadership.
But with a new head teacher and chair of governors at the helm, the school's latest SATs results have shown a dramatic improvement.
Overall, 71 per cent of pupils met the expected standards in reading, writing and maths - far above the national average of 53 per cent, and the North Yorkshire average of 51 per cent. The result was achieved in the year more rigorous SATs standards were introduced.
For reading and writing progress, the school is in the top 25 per cent across the country.
During his vist, Mr Sunak was shown round the school by school council members Summer Stuart, Mia Austin, Milly Betteridge and Harvey Olney, accompanied by executive headteacher Maxine Price and chair of governors Janet Probert.
He said he was most impressed by the progress made at the school under the new leadership team supporting the teachers and other staff.
"It is reassuring to see what can be done to turn a situation round," he said. "It was great to see how polite and engaged the pupils were. They had lots of interesting questions for me about Westminster, being an MP and the recent election.
"However, I was disappointed to learn that in the mock general election held at the school the Green Party won!"
While at the school, Mr Sunak heard about the school's proposal to become part of a multi-academy trust with a number of Church of England primary schools in the northern North Yorkshire area.