SOUTH Bromsgrove High School has been selected by the National College for Teaching and Leadership to play an important role in raising teaching standards by becoming a national teaching school.

Teaching schools take a leading role in recruiting and training new entrants to the profession, identifying future leaders and providing support for other schools.

Headteacher Paul Topping said: “Governors declared an ambition to become a teaching school after our outstanding Ofsted inspection in 2012. Leaders, teachers and support staff have been building capacity since then and I am delighted that our application has been successful.”

South Bromsgrove was one of only 200 schools in England to be granted teaching school status in the latest designation round.

Introduced in 2011, teaching schools are all rated as 'outstanding' by Ofsted and mark a shift towards school-centred training.

The idea is to raise standards through school-to-school support, engage in research and development and ensure that the most talented school leaders are spotted and supported to become successful headteachers.

Charlie Taylor, chief executive of the National College Teaching Leadership, said: “South Bromsgrove High should be very proud of their teaching school status. It recognises the school’s outstanding performance and its track record of raising standards through supporting other schools."