Fakenham Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 8 October 2024

Pupils at Fakenham Academy learn the importance of being kind, ambitious and determined. They value that staff will go the extra mile to support them when life throws up challenges. Pupils are motivated by the fact they are rewarded when they do well. This includes trips, prizes and the gold, silver and bronze badges they take great pride in wearing. Pupils feel happy and safe, as the school shows care in all that it does. Staff have high expectations for pupils' achievement. Pupils appreciate how staff get to know them and make changes to lessons to suit their individual needs. Pupils especially like the 'take 5' activities that help teachers pinpoint where pupils need more support. All of this ensures that pupils achieve increasingly well. New starters quickly settle in and make friends, as the school is a pleasant place to be. Pupils treat each other with respect. They know and follow the clearly defined behaviour rules. Pupils feel a real sense of community. As sixth-form students put it, 'The school is small enough to care but big enough to do things.' This is reflected in the wealth of trips and community events the school engages with.

What the school should improve

• Some of the work the school has done to develop the quality of the wider curriculum and how well it is taught is relatively recent. There is still a minority of subjects where pupils do not achieve as well as they should because they do not retain important knowledge well enough. The school needs to ensure that it fully embeds the work done to develop the wider curriculum and how well it is taught, so that pupils achieve consistently well across the range of subjects taught.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)