What makes Dunton Green special?

At Dunton Green Primary School, we want children to have far more than simply a good education.

We want them to belong to a happy and welcoming community, develop confidence and resilience, discover new interests, experience things they may never have tried before and leave us with wonderful memories of their primary school years.

We are proud to be a small, inclusive community school where relationships matter, children are encouraged to have a voice and every child is supported to flourish.

Here are some of the things that make Dunton Green special.

A Beacon of Friendship

“Pupils see their school as a beacon of friendship.” — Ofsted, 2024

We think those words capture something very important about Dunton Green.

Our children are proud of their school and of being part of the Dunton Green community. Being a smaller primary school allows relationships to sit at the heart of school life: children know one another, staff know our pupils well and families are an important part of our community.

Our values of Respect, Resilience, Perseverance, Teamwork, Achievement and Kindness help children understand what it means to be part of that community.

We want every child to feel that they belong here.

Outstanding Leadership and an Ambitious School

Dunton Green was inspected by Ofsted in March 2024 and was judged to be a Good school, with Leadership and Management judged Outstanding.

Inspectors recognised a school moving forward rapidly, with renewed energy and enthusiasm amongst staff and children benefiting from its direction of travel.

We continue to be ambitious for Dunton Green.

We have high expectations for what our children can achieve and are continually developing our curriculum, learning environment and opportunities so that our pupils receive the best possible primary education.

Fantastic Outdoor Learning and Forest School

We are incredibly fortunate to have extensive school grounds which wrap around our site.

We believe children should make the most of them.

Our qualified Forest School Leaders give children opportunities to explore and investigate the natural environment while developing independence, resilience, communication, creativity, teamwork and confidence.

Forest School is deliberately hands-on. Children solve problems, make decisions, learn to assess risk and discover that sometimes the best learning happens when you are allowed to explore.

Every child has opportunities to experience Forest School at different points during their time at Dunton Green.

Learning outdoors also extends beyond Forest School, with our grounds used across the wider curriculum, for sport and for enrichment.

Nurture and Pastoral Care

Ofsted identified pastoral care as a strength of Dunton Green.

Children cannot flourish academically unless they feel safe, secure and supported.

We take children's wellbeing seriously and work hard to ensure that there are trusted adults around them who know when they need a conversation, some encouragement or additional help.

Positive relationships between pupils and staff were highlighted during our Ofsted inspection.

Our children have also helped develop The Nest, a space where pupils who may be finding something difficult can take time, find solutions and refocus.

We work closely with families too. Strong relationships between home and school allow us to understand children as individuals and provide the right support when it is needed.

An Inclusive School Where Children Learn Together

Dunton Green is proudly inclusive.

We believe that children should learn alongside their friends wherever possible and that provision should adapt to children rather than expecting children to fit a single approach.

Our staff identify additional needs early and adapt teaching and provision to help individual pupils succeed.

Ofsted specifically recognised the way staff adapt teaching for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and the positive relationships seen in classrooms, intervention groups and across the school.

Children who need additional support receive it, while remaining part of the life and learning of their class.

Broadening Horizons

We want children to discover a world beyond the classroom.

Our Broadening Horizons approach is about creating experiences that build children's knowledge, confidence, curiosity and aspirations.

Throughout their time at Dunton Green, pupils experience educational visits, visitors, sport, music, performance, outdoor learning and opportunities to explore subjects in memorable ways.

This might mean welcoming experts into school, taking part in workshops, competing in sport or experiencing practical science — including the heart and lung dissection that particularly impressed some of our older pupils when Ofsted visited!

By the time children leave Dunton Green, our ambition is that they:

• are academically well prepared for secondary school;

• have discovered a sport or physical activity they enjoy;

• have experienced music and had opportunities to learn an instrument;

• understand and respect people who may be different from themselves;

• have developed confidence, resilience and independence;

• have experienced new places, people and opportunities; and

• leave with wonderful memories and friendships.

We want our children to know that their horizons are wide.

Sport, Music and the Arts

A great primary education should give children opportunities to discover talents and interests they did not know they had.

Sport is an important part of Dunton Green life, with specialist teaching and opportunities including swimming, tag rugby, handball, netball and basketball alongside clubs and competitive events.

Our beautiful school field provides a wonderful setting for PE, play and our annual Sports Day.

Music also forms an important part of our wider curriculum. Children have opportunities to experience and perform music, while peripatetic teachers provide tuition in instruments including piano, guitar and brass.

Alongside this, theatre groups, dance companies, visitors and creative experiences help bring our curriculum to life.

Children Have a Voice

We don't just want children to attend Dunton Green. We want them to help shape it.

Our pupils are encouraged to express their views, take responsibility and make a difference.

Our School Council gives children a meaningful voice in school life. Ofsted highlighted pupils' growing sense of responsibility and noted that children were proud of changes they had helped bring about.

That matters to us.

Whether it is contributing ideas about playtimes, helping to develop The Nest, taking on responsibilities or giving their views about learning, our pupils learn that their opinions matter and that they can influence the community around them.

Developing Character and Confidence

Academic achievement is important, but primary education is about developing the whole child.

Our curriculum and wider opportunities deliberately help children develop:

Respect.
Resilience.
Perseverance.
Teamwork.
Achievement.
Kindness.

Children are encouraged to challenge themselves, solve problems, work with others, explain their opinions and sometimes do something that feels a little outside their comfort zone.

Ofsted recognised that our personal development work builds children's character and resilience and that pupils are confident enough to express their own views.

Those are qualities we want them to take with them long after they leave us.

Come and experience Dunton Green for yourself

There is a great deal we can tell you about Dunton Green on a website.

But the thing that is hardest to capture is how the school feels.

The relationships between children and staff.
The friendliness.
The space outside.
Children learning together.
The sense of community.

So if you're considering Dunton Green for your child, we'd much rather show you.

Come and visit us, meet our children and staff and experience Dunton Green for yourself.