🏆 East Wichel Community Primary School and Nursery in Swindon was awarded Primary School of the Year 2025 at the TES Awards.
East Wichel isn’t a shiny outlier. It’s a large, two-form entry school with high mobility and a deeply mixed pupil population. It’s in a town that’s been publicly called out as an education “cold spot” — a place often overlooked and unfairly judged.
But under the leadership of Paula Phillips, something different took root.
She decided:
✨ We are going to prove that a school can be outstanding and put wellbeing first.
✨ That staff can love their work and have time and energy for family and life.
✨ That the story told about our town — and our profession — can change.
And it has.
✅ East Wichel became Ofsted Outstanding in December 2022.
✅ Now they’ve won a national award.
✅ And Paula and her team are supporting other schools across Swindon to raise the bar too.
Paula didn’t do it to tick boxes. She did it because she almost walked away — then made it her mission to lead in a way that would work for everyone. She and her team built a culture rooted in clarity, care and necessity. Not perfection — just relentless purpose and practical tools that made life better.
This isn’t just a celebration. It’s a signal.
✨ You can do this in the right way.
✨ For your team.
✨ For your children.
✨ For your community.
And yes — whilst it’s not why you do what you do, isn’t it great that such a superb achievement can be recognised at the highest level too?
👏 Please join me in congratulating Paula and her team for the huge difference they’ve made.
And thank you to you for all you do, day in, day out, for our children and communities 🙏✨
I wish you a wonderful and well-deserved summer break ☀️🌷
Spotlight Resource
Are you looking for some summer reading?
And would you like to hear from more heads like Paula?
Then you might like our latest book: Outstanding Against the Odds: How seven schools Achieve Excellence.
Paula is one of seven heads who, with their teams, have created stunning education despite a raft of local (as well as national) challenges. They share how they did it – it will inspire you and give you practical advice.
