A JUNIOR school where many pupils come from deprived homes has passed a Government inspection with flying colours.

St Stephen's, Phillips Road, Blackburn, is very well led and managed by a committed headteacher, deputy headteacher and staff, an Ofsted team discovered.

Teaching is good, and every lesson the inspectors saw was at least of a satisfactory standard - with two out of three classed good or very good, they said.

St Stephen's has 257 pupils on roll, most of whom are regarded as well below average on entry at age seven.

Sixty-three per cent have English as an additional language - "which is very high", the inspectors said.

"Most come from homes where there is significant economic disadvantage," they added.

But they noted the high quality of work that teachers and support staff put in with pupils for whom English is not their mother tongue.

Parents were very supportive of the school and were seen as fully involved in the education of their children.

And they liked the fact that the school had high expectations of its pupils and provided a warm and caring atmosphere in which children of different faiths and cultures were welcomed and respected. This led to an ethos in which pupils felt confident to share their thoughts and ideas and respect the views of others.

Behaviour and the school's system for promoting good behaviour were very good.

The inspectors found St Stephen's had an inclusive and welcoming role in a multi-faith environment. They liked the acceptance of different faiths, the quality of worship and the encouragement given to pupils to reflect on spiritual matters. The school had made good progress since its last inspection and was judged to provide "good value for money."

The school will now develop an action plan to address the development of computers and information technology.

Chair of governors Irene Watson said: "The report is a credit to the head and all the staff involved and I know that we will go from strength to strength."

Headteacher Helen Smith added: "It has been a privilege to work in the school with such committed staff. We rely on teamwork and it is gratifying to see the level of support we have from parents and the acknowledgement by the inspectors of all our good work."