A VILLAGE primary school in North Herefordshire has converted to an academy.

St Michael's Church of England Primary School in Bodenham joined the Bishop Anthony Educational Trust (BAET) – a multi academy trust set up by the Diocese of Hereford – at the start of October.

The school, which has also recently been graded good by Ofsted, was visited by Judith Tinsley, the CEO of the trust, along with other board members to commemorate the historic event.

Pupils were told all about what was happening and the background of what the trust stood for before the eldest and the youngest pupils cut the ribbon.

A long consultation was held, with all stakeholders consulted ahead of the change.

Liz Alty, acting head teacher at the school, said: "The governors of St. Michael’s were particularly keen to ensure that the church school ethos that means so much to us was maintained and strengthened, and so the BAET was, for us, the obvious choice.

"We were pleased that Ofsted recognised and commented on the friendly, safe and secure ethos and that our mission statement ‘to enable high-quality learning in a safe Christian environment ‘ was evident in every aspect of school life.

"Being a church school, it seemed a natural choice for us join the Bishop Antony Educational Trust and we are excited to work with them in this new phase of school life."