PUPILS from a Worcestershire first school will bid a fond farewell to their headteacher as she retires after 40 years in teaching.

Heather Thomson, headteacher at Inkberrow First School, will say goodbye after 15 years at the school, during which she’s taken the school from a Satisfactory to an Outstanding Ofsted judgement.

Mrs Thomson has also supported the school as it becomes a Primary School but has now decided it was a great time for someone new to take on the challenges that lie ahead.

Mrs Thomson said: “I feel the school is in a very strong position, with an outstanding staff team who are well prepared to move the school forward.

“We have worked tirelessly to maintain the school’s high standards and I am confident that Glenn Duggan-Seville, the new headteacher, will build on the school’s success.

“The school has enjoyed working within the Avonreach Academy Trust and has welcomed the support from the colleagues there.”

Mrs Thomson has spent four decades educating children both in the Worcestershire area and further afield, and now plans to carry on her involvement in School Improvement having worked as a National Leader of Education for the last few years.

She said: “It has been a pleasure and a privilege to work in such a happy, positive environment with wonderful children and supportive parents and I will miss them all tremendously. I have been very lucky to have such a great career and have watched many children grow and flourish into adults and I’m proud to have been a part of that journey. I have been overwhelmed by the kind comments and good wishes I have received, so thank you to all, and now I look forward to my next chapter.”