Sutton-on-Sea Community Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 22 March 2022

This is a happy school. Relationships between pupils and staff are positive. Pupils are well cared for. As one pupil said: 'It is joyous here'. Another said: 'It's like one big family. It's never hard to find someone to play with. You can always find a friend.' Pupils grow in confidence and achieve well in most subjects. They take pride in their accomplishments. Staff have high expectations. A senior member of staff was heard saying to a pupil: 'Head up. Be proud of yourself. Look the part. Be the part'. Pupils typically live up to this expectation. Pupils behave well. They are polite and courteous. They are respectful to others. They greet each other around school and hold doors open for one another. Poor behaviour is rare. When it does occur, pupils get the support that they need. Pupils play an active role in the school. Older pupils enjoy being librarians and lunchtime monitors. Pupils are proud of the work of the school council. They enthusiastically told inspectors about their upcoming fundraising activities in aid of Ukrainian refugees. Pupils feel safe. Bullying is rare. Pupils understand the different forms that bullying can take. They are confident staff will deal with any instances that occur.

What the school should improve

• A small number of subjects are not yet well planned and sequenced. These do not make clear what pupils are expected to know and remember at each point of their education. However, it is clear from leaders' actions that they are in the process of bringing this about. Leaders need to complete the process of reviewing the curriculum in all subjects within their identified timescale. For this reason, the transitional arrangements have been applied.
• In a small number of subjects, leaders' intent for the curriculum does not make clear the underpinning knowledge that pupils need to have to master subject specific skills. This means that pupils do not develop these skills as proficiently as they could. Leaders should ensure that the curriculum sets out the underpinning knowledge that pupils need to achieve as well as they can in all subjects.
• Leaders encourage disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND to access the extra-curricular activities on offer. However, they do not systematically record and evaluate which pupils access which activities. This means that leaders do not know how successful they have been in ensuring that as many pupils as possible access the different activities. Leaders should ensure that they have a clear understanding of how many pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND, take up the extra-curricular activities that the school offers.

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