Churchill Park Complex Needs School

Churchill Park Complex Needs School is a special school for pupils with complex special educational needs and/or disabilities, all of whom have an education, health and care plan. It is part of Unity Education Trust, and its post-16 provision is on a separate site nearby. Following the June 2026 inspection, the school is judged to be performing at the expected standard across all evaluated areas, with safeguarding standards met. Pupils achieve well from their individual starting points, attend regularly, behave well, and are prepared well for adulthood. The curriculum is ambitious and appropriate, communication is central to learning, and provision in early years, inclusion, leadership and governance, personal development and post-16 is secure. Notable strengths include strong relationships between staff and pupils, sensitive and consistent behaviour support, bespoke therapeutic provision, effective use of pupil premium funding, and an impressive preparation-for-adulthood offer. Leaders and trust colleagues provide strong support and professional development, staff feel valued, and governance is effective. Attendance has improved since the last inspection, persistent absence has reduced, and pupils benefit from enriching experiences and well-planned transitions. Inspectors also identified areas for refinement. Assessment information is not always used precisely enough to identify gaps in pupils' knowledge or to inform future teaching. Checks on pupils' understanding do not consistently lead to effective adaptation, and in some cases pupils move on before they are ready or complete tasks that are too simplistic. Monitoring and quality assurance are not always sharp enough to focus improvement strategies, the writing curriculum is less established, early years staff can interact too quickly and slow independence, and some post-16 activities and wider enrichment analysis lack precision. These are improvement priorities rather than fundamental weaknesses, and the school remains at the expected standard overall.

Strengths

• Pupils achieve well from their individual starting points and develop independence and resilience.
• Pupils attend regularly, and attendance has improved with persistent absence reduced.
• Pupils behave well, respect each other, and unkind behaviour is rare.
• Leaders have developed an ambitious and appropriate curriculum tailored to pupils' individual needs.
• Communication is at the heart of the curriculum, including for pupils with the most complex needs.
• Early years provides a safe, happy and well-designed environment with strong parental involvement.
• Inclusion is rigorous, with accurate identification of barriers and high-quality bespoke therapeutic support.
• Leaders use pupil premium funding well so disadvantaged pupils access opportunities.
• Leadership and governance are strong, with effective trust support and high-quality professional development.
• Personal development and preparation for adulthood are impressive, with enriching trips and community experiences.
• Post-16 provision prepares students well for independent living and employment, with work experience and formal accreditation.
• Safeguarding standards are met, and pupils feel safe and cared for.
• Staff know pupils well and intervene sensitively and quickly to support emotional regulation.
• Pupils are well prepared for their next stage of education, training or adulthood.

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment information is not used precisely enough to identify gaps in pupils' knowledge and inform future teaching.
• Teachers' checks on pupils' understanding do not always lead to effective adaptation of teaching.
• In some cases, pupils move on to new learning before they are ready.
• Some learning tasks are too simplistic for pupils.
• Monitoring and quality assurance information is not used sharply enough to focus improvement strategies.
• The curriculum to support pupils' writing skills is less established.
• Monitoring of pupils' progress through the curriculum lacks precision, so adaptations and future teaching are not always focused.
• Early years staff are sometimes too quick to interact, slowing pupils' development of independence and resilience.
• Some post-16 learning activities are not as purposeful as they could be.
• Leaders' analysis of wider opportunities and take-up lacks precision, hindering tailoring to some pupils' needs and interests.

In 2024–25 pupils at Churchill Park Complex Needs School attended 89.6% of sessions (the national figure for special schools was 87.2%). 29.7% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 35.3%).

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, 1.7% of pupils at Churchill Park Complex Needs School were suspended at least once (nationally 5.1%). 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 Churchill Park Complex Needs School had 7.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for special schools was 6.6). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 5.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.5%).

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 Churchill Park Complex Needs School had 230 pupils, 100.0% of them with an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 99.5%).

It says it provides for: specific learning difficulty; moderate learning difficulty; severe learning difficulty; profound and multiple learning difficulty; social, emotional and mental health; speech, language and communication needs; hearing impairment; vision impairment; multi-sensory impairment; physical disability; autistic spectrum disorder; other difficulty or disability.

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 special school schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Churchill Park Complex Needs School received £25,835 and spent £22,721 for each of its 229 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,423,000 (£6,213 per pupil).

Across all 12 schools of Unity Education Trust, income was £9,934 and spending £10,116 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in King'S Lynn · Norfolk local authority: places and applications

Churchill Park Complex Needs School is part of Unity Education Trust, which runs 12 schools. The nearest others:

• King's Oak Academy King'S Lynn
• Highgate Infant School King'S Lynn
• Greyfriars Academy Kings Lynn
• St Germans Academy King'S Lynn
• Magdalen Academy King'S Lynn
• Wimbotsham and Stow Academy King'S Lynn
• Beeston Primary School King'S Lynn
• Northgate High School Dereham
• Grove House Infant and Nursery School Dereham
• King's Park Infant School, Dereham Dereham

What is Churchill Park Complex Needs School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Churchill Park Complex Needs School is Expected standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Churchill Park Complex Needs School last inspected by Ofsted?

Churchill Park Complex Needs School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Churchill Park Complex Needs School have?

Churchill Park Complex Needs School has 230 pupils on roll.

What age range does Churchill Park Complex Needs School cover?

Churchill Park Complex Needs School for pupils aged 2 to 19.

What are Churchill Park Complex Needs School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 0% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Churchill Park Complex Needs School?

Churchill Park Complex Needs School is at Winston Churchill Drive, Fairstead, King's Lynn, Norfolk, PE30 4RP.