Why Choose Blackfield?

We know what a big decision choosing a school is for parents. Your children are your world and we want to show you why Blackfield Primary and Nursery School is such a fantastic place for your child to learn, grow and develop as part of our family. Here you will find just a few of the reasons as to why we think you should send your child to Blackfield Primary and Nursery School, where we Make Learning Irresistible! #MLI

Click on the headings below to read more about our fantastic school!

Our School Journey from Nursery to Year 6

One of the real benefits of choosing Blackfield is that children can become part of our school community from the very beginning. Children can join our Nursery from age 2 years 9 months and, for children aged 3 and over, wraparound care is also available on our school site through Planet Kids.

Our Nursery is an integral part of the school, with our Nursery Manager working closely with our Early Years Phase Leader to create a joined-up Early Years experience. Children become familiar with our staff, buildings, routines and wider school community long before they start Reception.

For children who continue into Reception at Blackfield, starting Reception therefore feels much less like stepping into the unknown. They already know the school and many of the adults around them, helping to make transition into Reception as smooth and reassuring as possible.

From Reception onwards, children then remain with us through to the end of Year 6, without needing to change schools at the end of Year 2. This allows us to build long-lasting relationships with children and families and a deep understanding of each child's strengths, needs and development.

Discover Blackfield Nursery → Find out about Wraparound Care → 

It Feels Like a Small School

Although Blackfield Primary and Nursery School is an all-through primary, with children ranging from 2 - 11 years old, the building is strategically designed to suit the needs of our children. For our infant children, this means that we make it feel like a small, nurturing, infant school. There is a playground specifically for the infants, all of the classrooms have doors which open on to the playground and all of the infant classrooms are situated together in small block of the school. It is essentially an infant school on the same site as our junior school. The children get all the benefits of being at an all-through primary, the additional resources and expertise but still have that small-school environment to help them grow and develop from their nursery or pre-school setting.

Well Resourced

As a large primary school we have the resources to provide state of the art equipment and a well maintained grounds to support children with their learning.

New Technologies
Each classroom benefits from Chromebooks so that children have access to technology to help them learn throughout the entire school day. We also have a laser cutter, 3-D printer and virtual-reality head-sets.

FAB FM
Yes, we have our very own radio station! Not just because it's a lot of fun, but because developing children's speaking and listening is so important. Children prepare their 'DJ scripts', writing for a purpose and then get to host their own radio shows which are aired onto our playground for other children to listen to.

Forest School
We are fortunate to have our very own, large forest school site on our field. This provision is designed to support children's risk management skills, collaboration and many areas of the science and D&T curriculum. Not only this, but we have our very own Forest School Leader, so we can run sessions whenever we want and aren't reliant on having to hire an external person to run the specific activities. 

Sports
Our children have access to a well designed, purpose built sports hall. It allows our staff to not only teach high-quality sports lessons, but also offer your child a wealth of additional sporting opportunities and experiences.

Harry Potter Knight Bus
A few years ago our Pupil Leadership Team wanted somewhere to read quietly outside at break and lunch time. We did a lot of research and through some serious fund-raising we bought a reading-bus where children can go for a quiet place to enjoy a book. Because we always like to do the very best we can, we didn't just get any old bus, we designed our very own Knight Bus, from the Harry Potter stories (we're big fans of the books at Blackfield Primary School).

Exciting Curriculum

The curriculum is the content which we teach your children and there are many ways schools can do this. At Blackfield Primary School we are very proud of our integrated curriculum which combines subjects and is presented to children in an engaging, purposeful way.

So whether your child is learning English through script-writing and making their own Harry Potter computer game, or learning how to be a designer by making their own re-usable shopping bags to help the environment, you know that the learning is relevant to their lives and highly motivating to your child. 

Benefits of a Multi-Academy Trust

As part of Inspire Learning Partnership, our school benefits from being part of a wider family of schools while retaining its own identity and character.

Working together allows us to share expertise, resources and specialist support across the Trust. A central business team also provides services across our schools, helping us to work efficiently and ensuring that more of our funding can be focused where it matters most — on our children. This enables us to invest in high-quality resources, additional staffing and wider opportunities that enrich children's experiences at school.

Being part of the Trust also gives us greater flexibility to make decisions that work for our children, staff and families. One example is our term dates. We have chosen to have a two-week October half term, giving families the opportunity to spend more time together and, if they choose to travel, potentially access holidays outside the most expensive traditional school holiday periods.

Most importantly, being part of Inspire Learning Partnership means we are never working in isolation. Our staff work closely with colleagues across the Trust, sharing expertise, resources and successful practice. Teachers and support staff benefit from high-quality professional development, specialist expertise and opportunities to learn from colleagues across different schools. The Trust also provides greater opportunities for staff to develop their careers while remaining within our family of schools, helping us to attract, develop and retain excellent people.

For our children, this means they benefit not simply from the expertise within one school, but from the knowledge, experience and resources of a much wider team — all working together to provide the very best education and opportunities possible.

A focus on developing the whole child

At Blackfield, education is about much more than academic achievement. We want every child to leave us as a confident, curious and resilient young person, equipped with the knowledge, skills and character they need for the next stage of their lives.

Strong relationships are at the heart of this. We take the time to really know our children — their strengths, interests, personalities and the things they may find difficult. This allows our staff to understand what motivates each child, when to challenge them and when they might need additional encouragement or support.

Alongside a strong academic education, we deliberately develop the behaviours and attitudes that help children succeed. We teach them to be kind, independent, courageous, respectful and determined; to work well with others; and to understand that making mistakes and overcoming challenges are important parts of learning.

We also want children to recognise what they are capable of. Achievement comes in many forms, and we make a point of noticing, praising and celebrating children's successes — whether in the classroom, on the sports field, on the stage or through the contribution they make to our school community.

By the time children leave Blackfield, we want them to have achieved well academically, but just as importantly, to believe in themselves, be proud of who they are and feel ready for whatever comes next.