Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer

Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School is a small, nurturing school where pupils are well known and supported as individuals. Inspectors found strong provision across the school: behaviour and attitudes are good, leadership and management are good, early years provision is good and personal development is outstanding. Pupils behave well, feel safe and are kind to one another, and staff set high expectations for learning and conduct. The curriculum is broad and ambitious and builds from the early years. Reading is taught well, with skilful phonics, regular checks and good parental involvement. Pupils with SEND, including those in the specially resourced speech, language and communication provision and the provision for complex needs, are supported precisely and achieve well. Personal development is a particular strength, with nationally accredited nurture work, a wide range of enrichment opportunities and strong community links. The main area for improvement is writing. The school's whole-school approach to writing is new and not yet well established, so some pupils' transcription skills are not secure and their writing lacks fluency and depth. Leaders should develop staff expertise so that writing is consistently high quality. Safeguarding is effective. This was the school's first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Strengths

• Known and nurtured as individuals with supportive staff
• Kind and tolerant pupils who behave well and work hard
• High expectations for behaviour and learning
• Broad and ambitious curriculum that builds from the early years
• Strong phonics and reading teaching with regular checks and parental support
• Precise support for pupils with SEND, including specialist speech and language provision
• Highly effective provision for pupils with complex SEND
• Outstanding personal development with nationally accredited nurture work
• Wide enrichment opportunities and strong community links
• Strong leadership and governance with supportive staff development
• Effective safeguarding arrangements

Areas for Improvement

• Whole-school approach to writing is new and not yet well established
• Some pupils' transcription skills are not secure, so writing lacks fluency and depth
• Staff expertise in writing needs further development to ensure consistently high standards

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 Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer attended 94.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.1% 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, 4.6% of pupils at Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer 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 Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer had 15.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 8.5% 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, 30.2% of pupils at Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 11.1% 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 Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer received £12,708 and spent £12,087 for each of its 126 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £191,000 (£1,514 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).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Cromer · Norfolk local authority: places and applications

What is Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer is Good, from an inspection in December 2024.

When was Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer last inspected by Ofsted?

Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer was last inspected in December 2024.

How many pupils does Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer have?

Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer has 126 pupils on roll.

What age range does Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer cover?

Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer for pupils aged 4 to 7.

Where is Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer?

Suffield Park Infant and Nursery School, Cromer is at Mill Road, Cromer, Norfolk, NR27 0AD.