Date: 17 February 2023
“Pupils thrive in this caring, friendly school." That’s the opening of the latest Ofsted report of Farncombe CE Infants school. It continues, “They feel safe and happy. This is reflected in the comment of a pupil who said, ‘Our school is very kind.’”
“I was really pleased with that first sentence,” says Headteacher Andrea Simonsson. “It captured who we are as a school. And my staff feel the same way.”
The school’s vision is, ‘Let all you do be done in love’. Although that’s not quoted in the report, Andrea feels that the inspectors picked it up.
“We constantly go above and beyond for our children,” says Andrea. She points to the example of work done with the local Inclusion Officer and two pupils with special educational needs.
Farncombe organised a transport rota for two siblings to ensure they got to school. Staff picked the two up every day. “Consequently, because they were here regularly their learning improved and relationships with their friends were better,” says Andrea. The Inclusion Officer says that Farncombe is the only school in Surrey organising this level of support.
The school has 142 pupils aged between four and seven and has close links with the local community. “We’re the choir singing when the Christmas lights get turned on,” says Andrea.
The Ofsted report praises the school’s leadership saying they show ambition for all pupils. “Leaders have high expectations for all pupils. They provide an engaging curriculum that gives pupils a wide range of experiences."
Ninety percent of Farncombe’s pupils achieve the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, putting it in the national top 20% of schools for academic results.
Farncombe CE Infants School received a ‘Good’ overall rating in the recently published Ofsted report.