Fernhurst Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 24 June 2025

Pupils arrive happily to school each morning, eager to begin their school day. They look forward to learning and playing together. Lunchtimes are carefully planned to consider the needs and interests of pupils. Pupils can choose to play on the school's large fields with their friends or participate in an adult-led sports activity. Alternatively, they can choose to attend the school's lunchtime creative art club or find a quiet spot to read. Pupil 'happiness heroes' keep an eye out for anyone who might need some additional encouragement or support to join in with play at lunchtimes and breaktimes. The school is ambitious for all pupils. It sets high expectations for pupil achievement. Most pupils achieve well across the curriculum. There are very clear expectations for behaviour. Pupils learn to be positive role models and actively engaged learners. Over time, they learn about the human brain and how to get better at managing their emotions. Pupils enjoy regular 'happy breathing' sessions, as they learn how to use breathing exercises to re-establish a feeling of calm. This promotes a strong sense of well-being and helps pupils to be ready to work. Pupils benefit from the exceptionally wide range of experiences the school provides. Regular woodland- and beach-based learning helps pupils to engage with the natural world and deepen their understanding of key areas of the curriculum. For example, after learning about tidal movement at school, pupils were able to see and measure tidal changes at the beach.

What the school should improve

• The school does not ensure that some pupils get enough practice in the foundational aspects of writing, including letter formation and handwriting. As these pupils move through the school, they find it harder to access learning, which is not always well adapted to align with their starting points. The school should ensure that all pupils secure foundational knowledge and skills in writing before moving on to more complex writing tasks.
• On occasion, the school's checks on what pupils know and remember are not as effective as they could be. As a result, some learning activities do not focus sufficiently on addressing the gaps in knowledge that some pupils have. Consequently, some pupils do not learn as well as they could. The school should ensure that teachers are equipped to identify and address gaps in key knowledge so that pupils can achieve well.

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