Millfield Primary School

Millfield Primary School is a school in a period of significant change and improvement. It is part of the Enrich Learning Trust, has a specialist resource base for pupils with autism, and serves a community with above-average deprivation. The headteacher took up post in April 2025, and there have been substantial changes to senior leadership. Safeguarding standards are met. Inspectors found that most provision is secure: behaviour is calm and purposeful, pupils feel safe and cared for, early years is strong, inclusion is a clear strength, and personal development is well considered. The new curriculum has driven rapid improvement, and attendance is improving, with persistent absence falling quickly. The main concern is achievement. Pupils' outcomes in national tests and assessments remain below national averages, and some pupils have gaps in learning from previous weaknesses. Disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND are making better progress under the new curriculum, but outcomes do not yet reflect leaders' improvement work. Inspectors also found that spelling and handwriting errors are not always addressed promptly, so the quality of written work varies across subjects. Attendance, while improving, remains below national figures, and overall absence and persistent absence are above national averages. Leaders know the school and community well and have a clear vision. Staff morale is high, governance is effective, and the trust has helped strengthen leadership capacity. Leaders are working to regain the trust of a minority of parents after a period of change. Overall, the school is moving in the right direction but needs to sustain curriculum and teaching improvements, close gaps in pupils' learning, and continue raising attendance.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open culture where concerns are identified and managed.
• Pupils' behaviour is calm and purposeful, and disruption to learning is rare.
• Pupils are friendly, caring, polite, and bullying is rare.
• Leaders use the CARES values effectively to promote positive learning behaviours.
• An ambitious new curriculum builds cumulatively on prior knowledge and has driven rapid improvement.
• The curriculum has a strong focus on vocabulary and develops pupils' oracy.
• Teaching is consistent, with clear explanations, modelling, and regular checks for understanding.
• Reading is prioritised, with high-quality diverse texts and effective structured phonics.
• Early years provision is calm, purposeful, and ambitious, with high-quality adult interactions.
• Pupils with SEND are identified swiftly and supported well, including through The Glade and bespoke resource base provision.
• The specialist resource base is a springboard to success, with pupils integrating well into the main school.
• Pupil premium funding is used well to remove barriers and ensure equal access to learning and enrichment.
• Personal development is responsive and helps pupils stay safe, healthy, and respectful of others.
• Enrichment activities, including clubs, trips, and Spirit Week, are inclusive and broad.
• Pupils take on leadership roles and have a strong voice in school life.
• Staff morale is high, and leaders consider workload and wellbeing.
• Governance and trust support are effective in strengthening leadership capacity.

Areas for Improvement

• Achievement outcomes remain below national averages, reflecting historic underperformance.
• Some pupils still have gaps in their learning because of previous weaknesses.
• Disadvantaged pupils' outcomes are below national averages, with wide disadvantage gaps in recent data.
• Staff do not always address spelling and handwriting errors promptly.
• The quality of pupils' written work varies across subjects.
• Attendance remains below national figures.
• Overall absence and persistent absence are above national averages.
• High standards of curriculum and teaching need further development and sustaining across all subjects and phases.
• Leaders need to continue embedding work to improve attendance so fewer pupils are absent.
• Outcomes do not yet reflect the impact of leaders' improvement work.
• A minority of parents and carers lack trust in the school after a period of considerable change.

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 Millfield Primary School attended 92.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 22.4% 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, 7.1% of pupils at Millfield Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). 2 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 Millfield Primary School had 17.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 44.1% 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, 18.2% of pupils at Millfield Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 11.0% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 15 pupils.

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 2024–25 Millfield Primary School received £7,102 and spent £7,244 for each of its 283 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £230,000 (£812 per pupil).

Across all 9 schools of Enrich Learning Trust, income was £7,395 and spending £7,499 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 North Walsham · Norfolk local authority: places and applications

Millfield Primary School is part of Enrich Learning Trust, which runs 9 schools. The nearest others:

• North Walsham High School North Walsham
• Taverham High School Norwich
• Wymondham High Academy Wymondham
• Dereham Neatherd High School Dereham
• Spooner Row Primary School Wymondham
• Long Stratton High School Norwich
• Kenninghall Primary School
• Diss High School Diss

What is Millfield Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Millfield Primary School is Needs attention, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Millfield Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Millfield Primary School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Millfield Primary School have?

Millfield Primary School has 264 pupils on roll.

What age range does Millfield Primary School cover?

Millfield Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Millfield Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 46% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Millfield Primary School?

Millfield Primary School is at Recreation Road, Millfield Primary School, North Walsham, Norfolk, NR28 0ES.