In an interview with the South Yorkshire Times, the 55-year-old said he would not rest until the school is awarded the highest Ofsted marks.

He has previously helped turn around the fortunes of secondary schools at both Wickersley and Thrybergh.

And as Swinton is currently marked as only 'satisfactory' by Ofsted, he hopes to spearhead the same turn around in his latest position.

Mr Pridding, who took over from Dave Shevill this month, said: "This school has real potential.

"It was last rated as satisfactory and I don't think that is good enough for this community.

"With the help of colleagues, parents and pupils, I want to transform this into an outstanding school, and I am sure we can achieve that.
"I was previously at Wickersley Comprehensive School as deputy head from 2002-05 and Ofsted judged the school as outstanding.

"I was head at Thrybergh for four years and that was judged in January 2009 as 'a good school with outstanding features'.

"It was previously in special measures. I think my experiences at these two schools will really help me here at Swinton, and it is such an exciting time to be here."

Demolished

The current school building will be completely demolished and re-built over the next few years as part of a multi-million pound scheme to improve education in Rotherham.

The new school will be built on another part of the current site, but there will be no disruption to classes during construction.

Students will continue to have lessons in the present building and simply move to the new build when it is completed.

Mr Pridding said: "It is safe to say the new school build will be open within about the next four years so.

It will be within the school life of those students who are in Year 7 now.

"It was a big part of me wanting this job and it is a big challenge.

"But everyone – from the staff, and pupils, to parents and residents – will be involved in the process, and I'm sure we will be successful."