A city school which was once threatened with closure has been given an A star rating by Ofsted.

Perry Beeches in Great Barr was one of the worst-performing schools in the country when head Liam Nolan took over six years ago.

Exam results soared, and the school then went on to be named the most improved school in the nation following a run of record-breaking GCSE results.

Staff and students now have reason to celebrate after the school, which became an academy last May, was judged “outstanding” by Ofsted.

It scored top marks across the board under the Government watchdog’s tough new inspection regime during a visit at the beginning of March.

Inspectors found teaching and school leadership to be outstanding, as well as pupils’ progress and behaviour, and hailed the school as a “beacon of outstanding practice”.

Head teacher Mr Nolan said: “Here in the Midlands we now have it confirmed that we have the number one state school in the country.

"Our staff, community and students can hold their heads high – they have wiped out all the terrible experiences of the past and proved we provide an outstanding education – the very best in the Midlands and UK.”

Perry Beeches has won praise from the Prime Minister David Cameron and Education Secretary Michael Gove over the past year, with 100 per cent of students gaining five or more A star-C grades at GCSE in the 2012 exam results.

In September, 2012, Mr Nolan oversaw the opening of Perry Beeches II in the Jewellery Quarter - the first Birmingham city centre school to open in more than a decade.

It was opened under the free schools model, which allows teachers and parents to open sites away from local authority control.

Mr Nolan said he is hoping to build on his success by opening two more secondary schools in the city within the next two years.