Queen Elizabeth’s Academy – part of the Diverse Academies Trust – has been praised for its Christian vision which is enabling students to flourish.

Following a Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools (SIAMS) at the academy in February 2023, inspectors praised the Mansfield academy’s commitment to Christian values and rated it ‘good’ overall.

A SIAMS inspection focuses on the impact of a Church school’s Christian vision on students and adults within the school community. Queen Elizabeth’s – a church school under the Diocese of Southwell & Nottingham – was last inspected in 2015, when it was graded satisfactory.

The new ‘good’ grading reflects the huge strides the academy has taken to improve standards and embed Christian values into everyday life, so that students live and breathe core principles of kindness, truthfulness, and forgiveness.

Inspectors praised the academy’s approach to using nine Christian principles that have driven character development work, and which is ‘preparing pupils well to live life to the full and is enabling the whole community to live increasingly well together’. They also commented that, ‘the vision is fundamental to the care the academy shows to its pupils and wider community. Pupils are valued and the most vulnerable are flourishing in their learning’.

Other positive aspects in the report focused on leaders’ passion for driving forward the Christian vision, the exceptional pastoral provision for students, and how staff care deeply about the wellbeing of pupils at the academy – a fact which parents spoken to as part of the inspection greatly appreciated.

Principal Donna Percival said: “I’m incredibly proud to be the principal at Queen Elizabeth’s. The staff and students deserve this fantastic report, they’re a real blessing. Our academy goes from strength to strength and the report confirms that.”

The chief executive officer of Diverse Academies, Dave Cotton, added: “This inspection reflects the hard work of staff at the academy to ensure our students receive the highest standards of care and that their wellbeing is paramount in all we do. The Christian principles instilled in students’ daily lives at the academy are helping them to become well-rounded citizens of the future who are prepared to approach life ahead with kindness and thoughtfulness. I would personally like to thank all staff at the academy for their hard work and to congratulate them on such a successful outcome to the SIAMS inspection.”