As the latest member of the North Norfolk Academy Trust (NNAT), Cromer Junior School is set to embark on an 'exciting adventure', according to head teacher Whil de Neve.

The 290-pupil school, which was rated good in its most recent Ofsted report, this week officially became a member of the trust, a family of five schools including Sheringham High, Stalham High, Gresham Village Primary and Nursery, and Antingham and Southrepps Primary.

"There will be some exciting projects coming from a closer working relationship with other schools, but, for parents and pupils, initially being part of the trust will mean very little difference at all," Mr de Neve said. "There will be no change to uniform, no change to the name of the school and no changes to the curriculum other than the ones that are already planned."

Cromer Juniors prided itself on a "deeply inclusive ethos", Mr de Neve added, offering a broad curriculum and boasting one of only two autism bases in the area, which gives pupils with autistic spectrum disorders a chance to divide their time between the main school community and tailored, small group learning.

Being part of the NNAT will allow Cromer Juniors to share expertise and resources with partner schools, draw on the skills of a central finance team when bidding for grants and secure better discounts through bulk buying.

"What it should do is secure financial stability for Cromer Juniors in an increasingly unstable world of education funding," Mr de Neve said. "And, whilst we will continue to provide everything we currently offer, we will also be able to take advantage of new opportunities, particularly alongside our new partner primaries in the trust."

NNAT chief executive Dr Andrew Richardson, who is head teacher at Sheringham High School and executive head at Stalham High, said Cromer Junior School's motto of 'Broadening Horizons' fit well with the trust's ethos of 'Success For All'.

He added: "We are not about gimmicks and huge corporate business notions, but about the local, Norfolk context of education. The trust now educates students from nursery to sixth form across its schools, maintaining its Norfolk identity while being acutely aware of local pressures and challenges."