Ofsted report puts the spring in Springfield

Staff and pupils at Springfield Primary School in Sunbury on Thames have entered the new term with an extra spring in their step after the school was rated as Good by its latest Ofsted inspection – and Outstanding in two categories.

​The school, on Nursery Road, was visited by inspectors at the end of November and their report was published this week. Its quality of teaching, outcomes for pupils, early years provision and overall effectiveness were all rated as good, with the effectiveness of leadership and management, and personal development, behaviour and welfare marked down as outstanding.

Aspects of school life singled out for praise by the inspectors were the ‘unwavering drive and determination of the headteacher, leaders and governors’, above national average achievement in reading, writing and mathematics, and pupils’  ‘exemplary’ behaviour, which was put down to the fact that ‘children feel safe because they are listened to by adults’.

“The whole school is absolutely thrilled by the result of this inspection and the observations that have been made,” said Springfield’s head teacher Bethan Smith.

“The comments the inspectors made shows that the children have acted as great ambassadors for the school, and it’s wonderful to see the huge amount of hard work put in by so many members of staff recognised and rewarded as well. To be judged as outstanding in two categories is just the icing on the cake.”

Pupils are certainly given every opportunity to impress in and out of the classroom at Springfield, which since December 2013 has been a member of the GLF Schools multi-academy trust.

In recent times the school’s choir have performed at the Royal Albert Hall and London’s O2 Arena, its cricket and football teams have both enjoyed success in local inter-school competitions, and just before Christmas its quiz team came third out of 17 teams in a borough-wide competition. In September 2017, life at Springfield will take on a whole new dimension as the school opens its own nursery.

“This is the first time Springfield has been inspected, and we’re extremely happy with the outcome,” added Mrs Smith.

“Whilst it’s great to receive praise for the things that we are doing so well, it’s also extremely helpful for us to be made aware of other things we can do even better. The challenge now is to get every aspect of school life up to the highest level, but with the excellence of the teaching and support staff and the wonderful work of the children, I’m sure it’s a challenge we can meet.”