Great Whelnetham Church of England Primary School, near Bury St Edmunds, is praised by Ofsted inspectors as it shakes off ‘inadequate’ rating

A school that was previously in special measures has been on ‘an incredible journey’ to gain the Ofsted rating of ‘good’.

Great Whelnetham Church of England Primary School, near Bury St Edmunds, was inspected by the watchdog on October 11 and 12, achieving ‘good’ overall and in every category.

The school was rated ‘inadequate’ and placed into special measures at its last full inspection by Ofsted, in January 2019, which was before it joined the All Saints Schools Trust.

Executive headteacher Claire Flatman said the achievement of ‘good’ was testament to ‘the hard work, dedication and care of our children, staff and families’.

The Ofsted report said: “Pupils enjoy coming to school. They are happy and safe. They speak with excitement about their learning, especially their reading.”

It added: “All pupils have activities that prepare them for their future lives.”

It also said pupils treat each other and adults with respect, they are encouraged to be independent and confident to take on new challenges both in and out of the classroom and students are proud to adopt leadership roles.

The school ensures pupils study a broad and ambitious curriculum, teachers check what pupils know and can do and they identify and address any gaps in pupils’ learning.

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) can access the full curriculum and most achieve well, especially in reading and maths.

Leaders have worked hard to improve pupils’ attendance and the report added: “Leaders at all levels are rightly proud of the continual improvements in the school.”

Mrs Flatman said: “The school, part of the All Saints Multi Academy Trust, has been on an incredible journey from special measures to good. We are overwhelmingly proud of this achievement which is testament to the hard work, dedication and care of our children, staff and families.

“It means so much to us that our children are receiving the education that they so richly deserve preparing them for a successful and happy future.”

To improve further, Ofsted says the school should ensure that pupils’ written work in foundation subjects is of the same high standard as it is in English.