AN over-subscribed secondary school has been graded outstanding in every respect in a recent inspection by Ofsted. Inspectors from the Government office for standards in education had nothing but praise for Sir John Lawes School in Manland Way, Harpenden.

AN over-subscribed secondary school has been graded outstanding in every respect in a recent inspection by Ofsted.

Inspectors from the Government office for standards in education had nothing but praise for Sir John Lawes School in Manland Way, Harpenden.

They praised the impact of the school's three specialist accreditations in media and communication technology, science and training-school status - a rare accolade from the Department for Children, Schools and Families - as well as its innovative teaching and learning practice.

Achievement was found to be outstanding with the school among the top few nationally in terms of effectiveness in transforming education attainment.

The inspectors also praised the sixth form as highly-effective and supportive with outstanding results, and students and parents interviewed praised the caring and nurturing ethos of the school.

In a letter to students at the school, lead inspector David Jones thanked them for their courtesy and consideration and commented that the respect offered to their classmates and the staff was good to see.

He also said he had asked the head and governors to focus on developing further outstanding learning opportunities, ensure the guidance students received from marking by teachers was always as good as the best practice in the school and to extend the range of sixth-form opportunities available.

Head teacher Claire Robins said: "This is a marvellous recognition of all the hard work by students and teachers over the past five years since we were last inspected.

"We knew we had a wonderful school but to hear it praised so comprehensively and unequivocally is marvellous for us all."

Blob*Another secondary school, Beaumont in St Albans, has been judged outstanding in a recent Ofsted subject inspection of modern languages.

Beaumont in Oakwood Drive, St Albans, has been a specialist language college since 2003 and offers four languages at GCSE and A-level as well as the International Baccalaureate.

Students can also take short courses in languages as diverse as Russian and Chinese.

Ofsted inspectors praised the range of languages on offer, the quality of teaching and the excellent facilities for language learning. They were also impressed by the range of enrichment opportunities including partnerships with schools in France, Germany, Italy, Slovakia and Hong Kong.

Head teacher Elizabeth Hitch said: "We believe that languages are an essential skill for working in a global economy and our aim as a language college has been to develop our students as world citizens.