Cropthorne-with-Charlton CofE First School

Overview

Cropthorne-with-Charlton C of E First School continues to be a good school, where pupils enjoy attending and embrace values of ‘honesty, peace, love and forgiveness’. The school maintains high expectations, ensuring all pupils achieve expected standards in phonics by the end of Year 2 and experience a full, inclusive curriculum.

Strengths

• The school has implemented an ‘ambitious curriculum’ with clear end points, ensuring split-age classes receive appropriately sequenced and challenging learning.
• Reading is central to provision; a well-embedded scheme ensures pupils read with ‘confidence and fluency’ by Year 3, with effective support for those falling behind.
• Pupils benefit from numerous extra-curricular opportunities, including coding, photography, and film club, alongside strong links with the local community and church.
• Staff effectively adapt curriculum delivery for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, using resources to enhance learning.
• Attendance is consistently well below the national average for persistent absence, and parents report strong relationships with the school.

Areas to improve

• Activities in the early years do not consistently match intended outcomes, meaning some children miss key learning; the school must ensure planned activities enable children to achieve these goals.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with staff vigilant in checking pupils’ welfare and reporting concerns.