Swaffham Bulbeck Church of England Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 5 December 2023

The school's Christian ethos of 'Shine Brightly' underpins all the opportunities pupils experience at this school. Pupils know everyone has the chance to 'shine' in sports tournaments, productions, clubs and community projects. Pupils appreciate that they are all treated equally and fairly. They feel included in all aspects of school life. Pupils know adults want the best for them. Pupils study a range of interesting topics, including learning about local historic figures such Molly Rose Marshall when studying the history of flight. Their learning is also supported through trips and visitors to school, for example to deepen their understanding of Anglo-Saxons or science. They are helped to remember key knowledge through regular checks on what they have been taught. Adults give high priority to pupils' mental well-being. Pupils know adults check in with them regularly. This makes them feel secure. Pupils are respectful to each other and develop solid friendships. They know the school rules and how to make good behaviour choices. Through the school council, pupils help leaders improve school life, such as safely accessing the wooded area at playtimes. Many run their own lunchtime clubs and plan ways to raise money for charity. They like how adults support them to realise their ideas.

What the school should improve

• A few pupils with significant gaps in learning are not catching up quickly enough. These pupils need to have their targets broken down into smaller steps. Staff should check more frequently that these pupils are achieving what they are capable of achieving. Staff need additional training to ensure that they have the confidence and skills to support these pupils most effectively.
• Sometimes, work given to pupils limits how well they can demonstrate their depth of knowledge. This means that teachers cannot fully check on how well the pupils are applying their knowledge from across subjects in the way the ambitious curriculum intends. Staff need to ensure that checks on pupils' understanding allow more opportunity for pupils to show they have grasped these curriculum connections independently and in detail.
• In the early years, some of the key knowledge children need ready for the wider curriculum in Year 1 is not stated explicitly enough in plans and covered in the provision. This means these children are not as fully prepared as they could be for all subjects in Year 1. Leaders need to ensure that this knowledge is explicitly signposted, and that staff check robustly that this knowledge is specifically covered.

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