IT MAY be facing closure, but Blackheath Bluecoat is a good, improving school according to its latest Ofsted report.

The 242-year-old school, whose former pupils include Rio Ferdinand and Stephen Lawrence, closes next August after Greenwich Council agreed to shut it due to falling pupil numbers and a projected financial deficit.

Despite this, the school has been graded "good" by Ofsted inspectors - a vast improvement on its "satisfactory" score three years ago and 2003's inspection when it was placed into special measures.

Inspectors, who visited in May, praised pupil behaviour, leadership and teaching standards. And its rating compares well to neighbouring schools like Eltham Hill, which was rated satisfactory at an inspection last January.

Blackheath Bluecoat, which now has just 301 pupils left on its roll, was inaugurated into a federation four years ago and, since then, has seen the percentage of pupils getting five A* to C grades, including English and maths, soar from 31 per cent to 59 per cent.

Headteacher Barnaby Ash said: "It is a fitting testimony to the hard work of the staff and pupils in bringing about such a significant improvement in the school since 2009.

"The school has truly improved the life chances of pupils attending the school since the inauguration of the federation in 2009.

"It makes the fact that the school will be closed by Greenwich Council in 2014 even more poignant, and is clear evidence of what might have been possible if only we had been given more time."

Pupils used half-term to put together a banner which will now proudly display the school's achievement to passers-by.

Chair of governors David Prescott said: "The school is determined to continue to do its very best right until our last day of operation, which is why we created the banner to thank the pupils and inspire them to even greater exam success in the next few weeks.

"Hopefully we will be able to establish a new Church of England Secondary in the borough very soon, built on Blackheath Bluecoat School’s solid achievements, determination and hard work."