Colkirk Church of England Primary Academy

Overview

Colkirk Church of England Primary Academy continues to be a good school, where pupils are “very happy” and feel “very safe.” The inspection confirms that leaders have raised expectations, resulting in a “calm and focused atmosphere” and appropriate progress in reading and mathematics.

Strengths

• Pupils are enthusiastic about learning, enjoying a “wide range of interesting clubs” and educational experiences such as federation days and community trips.
• The curriculum is “carefully selected” with clear sequencing, leading to pupils becoming “confident writers and mathematicians.”
• Support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is “precise and highly focused,” enabling them to learn well through adapted teaching.
• Reading is taught effectively with “high levels of individualised help,” allowing previously struggling readers to catch up to national expectations.
• Staff feel “well supported by leaders” and benefit from shared expertise within the federation and trust network.

Areas to improve

• Older pupils often do not use punctuation well enough, meaning their writing is “not as good as it could be”; the school must address these gaps to ensure pupils become “accurate and competent writers.”
• Some pupils are not extended sufficiently during “less structured learning time,” such as play, which impacts their progress; staff need to be more skilled at identifying how to extend learning appropriately.

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective.”