Surfleet Primary School

About Surfleet Primary School

Surfleet Primary School has turned a significant corner. In its most recent Ofsted inspection in 2024, the school was rated Good overall, a remarkable improvement from its previous inspection in 2020 when it was judged Inadequate. Every category — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision — now sits at Good. That turnaround is the headline story here, but the academic data tells a more complicated tale. At Key Stage 2, just 27% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. That is well below the Lincolnshire local authority average of 57%, and it places Surfleet 30th out of 32 primary schools in the South Holland district. The school’s national ranking sits in the bottom 3% of all primaries on this measure. The improvement in behaviour and leadership is clear, but translating that into higher academic outcomes remains a work in progress.

Looking closer at the KS2 results, the picture is uneven across subjects. In writing, 55% of pupils reached the expected standard, which is the school’s strongest core subject. Reading was lower at 36%, and maths at 45%. The average scaled scores reflect this: 97 in reading and 99 in maths, both below the national benchmark of 100. No pupils achieved the higher standard in reading, writing and maths combined, and only 9% did so in maths individually. Progress scores are not available in the data, so it is hard to say how much value the school adds relative to pupils’ starting points. Given that 35.9% of pupils are eligible for free school meals — well above the national average — the school serves a relatively disadvantaged cohort. The Ofsted report notes that behaviour and attitudes are now Good, which suggests a more settled environment for learning than the previous inspection found.

The school is small, with just 64 pupils against a capacity of 105, and it is heavily oversubscribed for Reception places in 2025/26. There were 19 applications for only 4 places, giving an oversubscription ratio of 4.75, and all 4 first-preference applicants were offered a place. Facilities include a dining hall, library, playing fields, art studios and a chapel, and the school runs clubs such as film, choir, chess, coding, art and drama. Sports on offer are football, cricket, swimming and rounders. SEND provision covers specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, and speech, language and communication needs. This is a school that has clearly stabilised under headteacher Rick Chipperfield, but parents should weigh the strong Ofsted rating against the still-low academic outcomes. It will suit families who value the small, community feel and the recent improvements in behaviour and leadership, but who are also prepared to support their child’s learning at home to bridge the gap to local averages.

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