The government is set to publish enrichment benchmarks for schools alongside announcing a £132.5 million scheme to fund activities in schools. The OfSTED new framework 'personal development' wil drive Ofsted's update of its inspection toolkits taking effect from September 2026 so will take account of the new enrichment benchmarks.
What are primary schools good at? If you use your fingers and toes you could count the large number of 'enrichment opportunities' schools offer now. Music groups, arts and culture, enviromental and sustainable projects, plant and animal studies, outdoors and adventure, sport and physical activities, digital literacy, STEM clubs, cooking.... the list goes on and on.
Primary schools take curriculum development very seriously because they understand how children can be motivated to question and find out more, so planning is key. This year's Schiller Lecture by Claire Banks (NAPE video out soon) argued that creativity drives learning and demonstrated this time and time again on the screen with high quality children's work and detailed planning tables for each year and curriculum area.
The DfE have coined the phrase 'enrichment'. But I think that the DfE have really missed a trick and should be advised to examine Claire (and Mick Water's) book, 'A Curious Curriculum: Teaching Foundation Subjects well'. They might learn something.
By: Mike Aylen
On:26-06-2026
