DNEAT MAT News

Swaffham Church of England Primary Academy, part of the Diocese of Norwich Education and Academies Trust (DNEAT) has received ‘Good’ in every criteria from its recent Ofsted report.

Nicola Kaye, Headteacher of Swaffham Church of England Primary Academy said: “Our ‘Good’ Ofsted report is a true testimony of the hard work and dedication of our whole school team of staff, pupils, families and governors.  Swaffham Primary Academy has been on an incredible journey since changing status from a junior to a primary in September 2020.  We have worked hard to design an ambitious curriculum from Reception through to Year 6.  We are delighted that Ofsted recognised this and stated in their report that ‘learning builds year on year’ and ‘pupils have frequent opportunities to develop their learning and experiences beyond the classroom.”

She added: “We were thrilled that Ofsted understood the SPA Way (how we do things around here) and could see that this underpins all aspects of our school life.

This is so important to us and truly is what we are all about.  We will continue to drive forward our plans this year to build on this success as we refine and develop our curriculum further.  This includes the launch of our new bespoke provision to meet the needs of pupils with SEND and the launch of Forest Schools.”

The inspector noted that pupils enjoy coming to school both to learn and to spend time with their friends, they feel safe and are happy in school.  Bullying is rare and pupils know that adults will help with any worries they may have and provision for pupils with special educational needs and/ or disabilities is effective. Pupils have a good understanding of healthy relationships, and they have many opportunities to take on responsibilities. The arrangements for safeguarding are effective and leaders and teachers know pupils and their families well.

Oliver Burwood said: “The Trust is delighted that Swaffham Church of England Primary Academy has received a good grading and supports the children in its community to do well. Nicola and her team have worked extremely hard to achieve this, with the added pressure that growing from a Junior to a full Primary brings. The Trust is pleased that around 92% of its schools are now judged by Ofsted to be good or better, which is above the national average and makes us one of the best performing Trusts in our region, providing fantastic schools for children and families across the Diocese of Norwich.”

The school which has 222 pupils from four to 11 received two visits in June 2023.