Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School

Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School is good across all inspected areas: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. This was its first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and it remains good following its previous inspection. Pupils are happy, safe and kind, attendance is high, and children in the early years settle quickly into clear routines. The school offers an ambitious, logically sequenced curriculum, makes reading a priority, and provides a wide range of clubs, trips and community activities. Safeguarding is effective. Most pupils with SEND flourish because of the support they receive, and leadership is strong: leaders understand the school’s strengths and development needs, governors hold them to account, and staff value the training they receive. However, the report identifies two main areas for improvement. Pupils’ knowledge of different world religions and cultures is limited, so their understanding of diversity is not as rich as it could be. In addition, some pupils with SEND do not get swift, precise reading support, and some teachers lack clear guidance on adapting the curriculum for SEND pupils, which slows learning for a minority. Overall, the school is well placed to improve further. Most parents are happy with the education provided, although some are less pleased while acknowledging recent improvements.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, safe and kind, and know they can seek help from an adult.
• Attendance rates are high and early years routines help children be ready to learn.
• The curriculum is highly ambitious and logically sequenced.
• Reading is a priority, with consistent teaching and quick catch-up support.
• Staff present new knowledge clearly and check pupils’ understanding meticulously.
• Most pupils with SEND flourish and are happy and confident.
• The PSHE curriculum develops healthy relationships, respect and open-mindedness.
• Pupils enjoy a wide range of clubs, sports, trips and residential experiences.
• Pupils contribute to school life and the local community through the school council and charity work.
• Leaders understand the school well, governors hold them to account, and staff value their training.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils’ knowledge of world religions and cultures is limited, weakening their understanding of diversity.
• Some pupils with SEND do not receive swift and precise support to improve their reading.
• Some teachers do not receive appropriate guidance on adapting the curriculum for pupils with SEND.
• Some pupils with SEND do not read or achieve as well as they could.
• Pupils need further opportunities to apply mathematical knowledge independently to reasoning and problem solving.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School attended 95.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 7.6% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 1.3% of pupils at Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School had 24.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 27.1% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 17.6% of pupils at Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.3% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School received £7,961 and spent £7,246 for each of its 164 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £159,000 (£974 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

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What is Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School last inspected by Ofsted?

Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School have?

Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School has 176 pupils on roll.

What age range does Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School cover?

Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 50% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School?

Freethorpe Community Primary and Nursery School is at The Green, Freethorpe, Norwich, Norfolk, NR13 3NZ.