Graffham Church of England Infant School (Voluntary Controlled)

With just 60 places across Reception to Year 2, this is a genuinely small infant school where families tend to know one another and staff can keep a close eye on each child’s progress and confidence. The school sits within the Lavington Park Federation alongside Duncton CE Junior School (Years 3 to 6), with practical links between the two sites, including a morning and afternoon shuttle.

Leadership has recently changed. Charles Beckerson was appointed to succeed long-serving head Helen Martin, taking up the role in January 2025, and now leads across both federation schools.

For Reception entry, demand is healthy rather than extreme. For the latest published cycle there were 34 applications for 20 offers, which equates to 1.7 applications per place, and the school is recorded as oversubscribed. (No last offered distance is available for this school.)

The school’s ethos is intentionally values-led. On the federation website, its theologically rooted Christian values are set out as kindness, hope, respect, friendship, and responsibility, and the wider mission links school life to “living life in all its fullness” (John 10:10).

In practice, this reads as a school that aims to keep behaviour calm and relationships warm, with a strong emphasis on making children feel safe enough to talk about worries early. The most recent Ofsted inspection (October 2021) rated the school Good overall and Good in every judgement area, including early years.

Faith is present, but not positioned as exclusive. Families looking for a Church of England setting will recognise familiar features, including close ties to the local church community and regular moments in the year that connect school and parish life. The most recent published SIAMS report (January 2019) provides additional context on the school’s Church school development and collective worship at that point in time.

This review cannot lean on published Key Stage 2 performance figures because this is an infant school (it finishes at Year 2), and there are no current performance metrics listed for the school. The most appropriate way to judge academic standards here is through curriculum intent, classroom practice, and external evaluation.

Ofsted’s 2021 inspection judgement was Good across quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision.

The federation frames its curriculum around a strong “Love Our World” theme, aiming to build pupils’ knowledge while developing empathy and care for the wider world.

In Key Stage 1, the website sets out learning habits through a set of “C” values, including confidence, collaboration, communication, commitment, curiosity, creativity, and craftsmanship. For younger children, that typically translates into lessons that prioritise talk, explanation, hands-on tasks, and routines that help pupils build independence.

Outdoor learning is also presented as a distinctive strand. The school describes “Wild Wednesday Forest Schooling” as a structured opportunity to build collaboration, team building, and awareness of the natural environment. The practical implication is simple: if your child learns best when they can move, make, and explore, the curriculum is designed to accommodate that, rather than treating it as an occasional treat.

Because the school ends at Year 2, the most relevant transition is to junior provision for Year 3. The school sits in a federation with Duncton CE Junior School, so families should check the current junior-transfer route and timetable as part of their planning.

Practically, this can make the move to juniors feel less daunting: families are dealing with linked schools, shared leadership, and established routines between the two sites. The minibus shuttle is one example of that joined-up approach.

For families thinking further ahead (Year 7), secondary transfer will depend on home address and West Sussex admissions arrangements. Infant schools do not feed into a single secondary in the way some primary schools can.

Reception applications are handled through West Sussex’s coordinated admissions process, rather than directly by the school.

For September 2027 starters, West Sussex admissions information gives applications opening in the week beginning 5 October 2026, with a deadline of 15 January 2027. Offer day for on-time applicants is 16 April 2027.

Demand sits in the “popular local option” bracket. the school is marked oversubscribed for primary entry, with 34 applications and 20 offers (1.7 applications per place). That level of competition can still matter in a small school, because a handful of extra local applications can change outcomes quickly year to year.

If you are considering a place, it is worth reading West Sussex’s primary admissions key dates and guidance alongside the school’s own information, and using FindMySchool’s Map Search to sense-check practicalities like your likely journey and local alternatives before you commit to a single plan.

Small infant schools succeed or fail on consistency, and the school’s own framing emphasises relationships, belonging, and emotionally supportive routines. The values set, especially kindness and friendship, are explicitly positioned as day-to-day behavioural anchors rather than posters for the prospectus.

For parents, the key implication is that issues like friendship fallouts, separation anxiety, and confidence dips should be picked up early, because staff are working with fewer pupils and know families well. As always, the real test is communication: ask how the school shares concerns, how quickly you can expect feedback, and what support looks like for children who need a little more help settling.

Enrichment is structured around two things that matter for this age group: predictable routines, and short, purposeful activities that build confidence.

After-school clubs are offered on a termly basis, and the school publishes seasonal club letters. Timing is clearly set: clubs at Graffham typically run 15:15 to 16:15.

Outdoor learning is a named feature via Forest School, which is described as building collaboration and co-operation while developing awareness of the natural environment.

Wraparound care is evolving. A 2025 letter about clubs and wraparound indicates provision that is open to Graffham pupils, even when hosted on the junior site, so working parents should check the current arrangement for mornings and late finishes, and how transport between sites is handled.

The school day is clearly published. Gates open at 08:40, registration is 08:45, and the day ends at 15:15, with weekly time in school stated as 32.5 hours.

A minibus shuttle runs between the infant and junior schools, with a published price of £1 per journey and set departure times in the morning. This is particularly relevant for families with children on both sites.

Uniform guidance is also practical: many items can be bought from any retailer, with branded items ordered through the school’s chosen supplier.

• Small numbers cut both ways. A 60-place school can feel wonderfully personal, but friendship groups are also smaller, and a single year group dynamic can shape a child’s experience more than it would in a larger infant school.

• Oversubscription can bite in a village setting. With 34 applications for 20 offers year, it may not take many additional local applications to make entry harder in a given cycle.

• Transition planning matters. If your long-term plan is the junior school in the federation, ask early how Year 2 transition works in practice, including visits, buddying, and any transport arrangements for wraparound provision.

• Wraparound details can change. Because provision has been actively reviewed and updated, working parents should confirm current start and finish times, costs, and whether care is hosted on the infant or junior site this term.

This is a values-driven infant school that suits families who want a small, community-shaped start to education, with clear routines, outdoor learning, and a faith-aware ethos grounded in Church of England life. It is likely to suit children who benefit from being well known by staff, and parents who value close home school relationships. The main constraint is place availability, because even modest oversubscription can be decisive when cohorts are small.