Pupils love coming to this small, welcoming village school. It is full of happy smiles and thoughtful words. The school’s values, known as the ‘7Cs’, and motto, ‘kind hands, caring minds’, flow through all aspects of school life. Pupils feel safe and valued. Pupils and staff do not accept any form of bullying or unkindness. They trust adults and know that they will help them should they have a worry. Staff have high expectations. They want the best for all pupils. Staff know pupils and their families well. Pupils enjoy learning because staff make lessons interesting and fun. There is a buzz of excitement. Pupils are determined to work hard and are proud of their achievements. Pupils behave well and care about others. Those pupils who need support to understand their feelings and manage their emotions get the help they need. Playtimes are harmonious. They enjoy playing with their friends in the sandpit or using the wide variety of equipment that is available. Parents and carers are highly appreciative of the school. One parent echoed the thoughts of many by saying: ‘This is a nurturing, supportive school that has our child’s happiness at the centre of all that it does.’ What does the school do well and what does it need to do better? Graffham is a vibrant school where learning is engaging and exciting. Leaders and staff have high aspirations for all pupils. Leaders have designed an ambitious and broad curriculum. This provides all pupils with rich experiences which broaden their horizons further. Leaders make sure that the needs of the small number of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified appropriately. Staff make sure that these pupils get the right support to help them learn well in most subjects. Leaders are rightly focusing their efforts on further strengthening the curriculum. In subjects such as English and mathematics, the curriculum is well defined. The important knowledge pupils should learn, and the order in which they should learn it, is clearly set out. This helps teachers know exactly what pupils need to learn and remember well. However, not all other subjects are planned as precisely yet. Work is under way to address this. Overall, staff have secure subject knowledge. Useful training for teachers in reading, geography and mathematics is helping to ensure that these subjects are taught well. Teachers make sure that pupils’ learning carefully builds on what they already know and can do. However, in some subjects this is not as strong. Leaders have not ensured that teachers have the necessary expertise in all subjects. This means that pupils do not achieve as well as they could in these subjects.