Theale Green School celebrate at Pride of Reading awards

Theale Green School has been voted School of the Year at the 18th Pride of Reading awards.

Organisers of the event – hosted by TV presenter Chris Tarrant at Reading FC Conference and Events on Friday, December 2 – commended the school's success in boosting its Ofsted rating from Requires Improvement to Good through the pandemic.

"School leaders have worked with determination to raise the school profile in the community," the inspectors said of the school.

Speaking on the school's win, executive principal Joanna Halliday said: "We have been truly motivated by the kindness of the whole community in supporting us through very challenging circumstances. There is, and always has been, something special about our school in the heart of a community.

"With a difficult winter ahead for families, students and staff in all schools, how we work together to support each other feels more important than ever."

This year's Pride of Reading awards theme was Let's Celebrate and the ceremony was attended by Theale Green's director of sport Tony Blinco and office manager Sandra Eaton, who have both amassed several decades of service between them at the school.

The unknown awards nominator added: "They [the school] have turned round a failing school that went through three headteachers in a short period of time to an Ofsted rated Good. Jo Halliday, the new head, has led on this, ably assisted by the trojan figures who weathered the storms such as Tony Blinco, Lesley Parker and John Neil."

The award comes after a year of successes for the school. In September, it achieved the Platinum Mark Award for its commitment to PE and also won the Outstanding Secondary Practice Award by the Youth Sport Trust earlier in 2022.