Staff and pupils have been celebrating a month of double success for their school.

Football teams from every year except one at Hove Park School made the finals of Brighton and Hove Cup competitions and won the trophies for both Year 7 and 11.

An Ofsted report on the 1,514 pupil school and sixth form, which has campuses in Nevill Road and Hangleton Way in Hove, was also published this week following a visit by inspectors in March.

The officials said standards were rising at the school after an inconsistent period, despite having a pupil intake with standards below the national average.

They gave Hove Park, which has specialist languages status, a Grade 3 rating, considered "satisfactory".

Headteacher Tim Barclay said: "This is a school that is going places and has a bright future. I am delighted that all the hard work our pupils and staff have put in has been recognised by the inspectors."

Hove Park is the fourth of the nine Brighton and Hove secondary schools to be inspected this year following the introduction of shorter inspections by the government. Patcham High, Falmer High and Dorothy Stringer School have already had visits while Varndean School is understood to be expecting inspectors in the next few weeks.

In his report on Hove Park, Ofsted inspector Stephen Long said: "The school has determinedly promoted equality of opportunity and done much to welcome a wide range of students."

"Standards are rising and the school is on course to meet specialist targets in foreign languages this year."

The Ofsted officials drew attention to several areas of concern including behavioural problems and a fall in standards in tests taken at 14 and 16 years-old.

The report said: "The majority of students behave well and treat each other and their teachers with respect. However, for a minority this is not always true and a significant number of parents, and some students, are concerned about this."

The inspectors noted that Hove Park had taken a number of pupils from East Brighton since the closure of Comart, in Wilson Avenue, in 2005.

They said standard for 11 to 14-year-olds had been rising until two years ago, which coincided with this change in intake.

Ofsted also noted Hove Park's status as the UK's first International school.

The inspectors said work was needed to improve educational outcomes for those students in Year 10 and 11 who have learning difficulties associated with poor attitudes, behaviour and attendance and said pupils needed to be challenged better with work matching their capabilities. They said all leadership staff needed to ensure behaviour was managed properly in classrooms.

At the school's previous inspection, in February 2001, Ofsted ruled that it was "good".

Mr Barclay said: "Strategies are already being implemented to achieve further improvements."

Brighton and Hove's Alternative Centre for Education (ACE) received the report from its recent Ofsted inspection on Monday.

ACE, which is based in Queensdown School Road in Brighton and has five sites across the city, was rated Grade 2, considered "good".

The school provides for pupils with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. It takes in disruptive students who have caused problems in the city's mainstream schools.

In her report Ofsted inspector Kay Johnson said: "The quality of education and care provided by the Alternative Centre for Education (ACE) is good with many outstanding features.

"The commitment and determination to reintegrate pupils into mainstream education and to reduce exclusions have been relentless. The visionary leadership of the principal and the dedicated senior leadership team make this complex provision thrive and influence change within its community and further afield."

BOX: HOW has Ofsted rated your school?

FIVE Brighton and Hove Secondary Schools have been visited by Ofsted since new short form inspections were introduced: School Inspection Date Rating Portslade Community College 16/11/05 Grade 3/Satisfactory Patcham High 09/10/06 Grade 4/Inadequate Falmer High 01/11/06 Grade 3/Satisfactory Dorothy Stringer 17/01/07 Grade 2/Good Hove Park 22/03/07 Grade 3/Satisfactory The remaining four were last inspected under the longer Ofsted format: Varndean 22/10/01 "very good"

Blatchington Mill 23/09/02 "good"

Longhill High 22/09/03 "satisfactory"

Cardinal Newman Catholic 27/09/04 "good"