EDUCATION officials have stepped in to take urgent action at a Kent school following a poor inspection report.

Medway Community College in Chatham, has been placed in special measures following an Ofsted report which found standards at the school to be inadequate.

The school will now be subject to direct intervention by Medway's Local Education Authority and if the situation does not improve it could be shut down in last resort.

A four-part action-plan has been drawn up to tackle the problems at the school.

They include plans to foster a more positive ethos, set pupils more challenging targets, make sure pupils know how they can improve and identify clear strategies for improvement.

Government inspectors will make regular check ups to ensure progress is being made.

Rose Collinson, director of children's services for Medway Council, said there was a lot of work to be done to improve the school.

She said: "This report is clearly disappointing. There is a lot to do to improve the school and we will support them in tackling the problems identified by Ofsted."

See Monday's Medway Messenger for the full story.