Inspectors say Freemans Endowed CE Junior Academy in Wellingborough is on the way to an outstanding Ofsted result

Staff and pupils are delighted after being told they are on the right path to becoming an outstanding school.

Freemans Endowed C E Junior Academy, which is part of the Peterborough Diocese Education Trust (PDET), recently received a really positive Ofsted report stating the school would be judged outstanding if a graded inspection were to take place.

At the end of the summer term, the school received a Section 8 visit from the education inspectorate – this type of visit is to monitor schools that have been previously judged as good in a graded inspection.

Inspectors found the school showed such evidence of improved performance since its last graded inspection in 2017, that it could be judged as outstanding if a full inspection were to take place now.

Headteacher Fiona Hull said: “Despite the challenges of the last few years, our school community has gone from strength to strength and we are so proud of all we have achieved together.

“Our aim is to create a safe, inclusive and harmonious environment where all our pupils feel empowered and aspire to excellence, developing into confident, respectful, valued citizens.

"To see this vision being brought to life every day by our incredible pupils and dedicated staff is beyond rewarding and I couldn’t be prouder of everyone.”

Described in the report as a ‘warm, friendly and happy school’, Freemans Endowed was praised to inspectors by parents and pupils alike, with one child saying that he considered ‘pupils were lucky to come to the school’.

It said parents valued the school’s ‘aspirational culture’, with one parent quoted as summing up the feelings of many others in saying: “The school is fantastic. All the staff have given my child an excellent and positive start to their educational journey.”

The ambitious curriculum, strong subject expertise and a skilled teaching staff were all noted in the report as contributing to the overall success of the school, leading to pupils who are ‘motivated and behave well in class’ with ‘a real interest and curiosity in their learning’.

The report also highlighted how the school’s ability to embed learning about British values has made a keen impact on pupils, with the report describing how ‘pupils have a deep understanding of fundamental British values such as democracy. As a result, pupils are tolerant and respectful of each other and celebrate the fact that everyone is different.’

Co-curricular opportunities for pupils, such as visitors to the school, trips and residentials, were praised as supporting pupils’ personal development, along with opportunities to develop civic responsibility through an eco-committee, fundraising events and the school council.

Governance from PDET was also held up as an example of the school’s good practice, with the report saying: “Those responsible for governance are well informed about the school’s priorities. Effective systems are in place to hold leaders to account.”

Ruth Walker-Green, CEO at PDET, said: “This marvellous report serves to underscore what the Freemans school community already knows well – this school is outstanding in every way and deserves to be formally recognised as such.

"The team here are tireless in their pursuit of excellence for all children, both academically and in terms of ‘whole person’ development and we are so proud to see this recognised by Ofsted.”