Fleetwood Flakefleet Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 1 May 2024

Flakefleet is a very special school. Pupils flourish. This is due to the loving support that they receive from the staff, who know them exceptionally well. This school truly sits at the heart of its community. The care and attention that is offered to pupils radiates beyond the school gates to their parents and carers. Serving pupils' best interests is at the centre of the school's work. As a result, barriers to learning or pupils' well-being are identified carefully and skilfully removed so that everyone can 'dare to dream'. The school wants pupils to succeed academically. Recent improvements to the curriculum mean that many achieve well across a range of different subjects. Pupils also blossom in terms of their social and emotional development. They gain a mature understanding of the world around them. Pupils thoroughly enjoy their time at school. They behave well. They value spending time with each other. For example, pupils of all ages happily play together at breaktimes. They make the most of the exciting outdoor provision, whether this is chatting in the tyre park, riding a scooter or exploring the sandpit. Pupils eagerly give their time to support their school, for example, by acting as digital leaders, buddies or house ambassadors. In doing so, pupils gain confidence in their own abilities and they develop a keen sense of responsibility. A wide range of clubs and educational visits broaden pupils' experiences and harness their interests and talents.

What the school should improve

• Teachers' checks on pupils' knowledge at the start and end of units of work are not effective enough in spotting gaps in learning or ensuring that pupils remember what has been taught. This means that some pupils are not able to build securely on what they know. The school should finish its work in devising suitable assessment strategies that help pupils to make the progress that they should through the new curriculums.
• The approach to helping some pupils gain ground in phonics does not aid their progress through the phonics programme or the writing curriculum. Some pupils fall further behind in their knowledge of phonics, while some older pupils miss out on the rich writing curriculum. The school should revisit its approach to closing gaps in reading so that pupils become fluent readers who are also keeping pace with the other subjects that they study.
• Some pupils' written work is hampered by weaknesses in their spelling, handwriting and grammar knowledge. This limits their success in English and across other curriculum subjects. The school should ensure that these fundamental skills receive greater attention in the early years and key stage 1 so that pupils are better prepared for success in key stage 2.

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