Upham Church of England Aided Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Upham Church of England Aided Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

This is a delightful village school where pupils get on well with each other. They love having friends in every year group. The Christian values of 'love and care' are at the heart of everything the school does.

There is a family feel and a real sense of belonging. Adults know all the pupils and relationships are strong. Pupils are happy, safe and well behaved.

Pupils do not worry about bullying because they know that adults will deal with any issues quickly.

Governors and leaders want pupils to do their best and be highly successful. Pupils try their... hardest to live up to these expectations.

They want to learn. Older pupils, particularly, are keen to contribute in lessons and have the confidence to ask for help.

Leaders provide a range of responsibilities for pupils to experience.

For example, peer mentors help to sort out any friendship problems on the playground. Year 6 pupils take their roles of being buddies to the Reception Year children very seriously. They know they are mentors as well as friends.

Sports leaders organise 'warm-ups' in physical education lessons and the dog handlers are learning how to look after Maggie, the school dog.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Reading is the number one priority for leaders and governors. Pupils across the school develop a love for reading.

Teachers introduce them to a wide range of challenging texts. This deepens pupils' reading fluency and understanding. For instance, Class 4 read 'The Wonder Garden', which links to their topic on Brazil.

Teachers read to pupils frequently. The youngest children enjoy listening to stories and rhymes and taking books home to share with their parents and carers.

Most pupils read well by the end of key stage 1.

Leaders have recently purchased a new phonics scheme. This ensures that pupils, including the youngest children, read books that closely match their phonics knowledge. Phonics teaching starts straight away in the Reception Year.

Staff are trained and knowledgeable in the teaching of phonics. For those pupils who struggle, there are effective strategies in place to support them.

The curriculum is broad and ambitious for all pupils.

Subject leaders are clear on what knowledge and skills pupils should acquire at each stage. However, sometimes teachers focus more on the topic intended to link learning than on the different subjects. As a result, pupils are not always sure what subject they are studying.

They do not make links readily with what they already know in the subject. Consequently, pupils' depth of knowledge and understanding is not consistently as strong in other subjects as it is in reading and mathematics. Leaders are aware and are addressing this.

That said, teachers have strong subject knowledge. They are skilled in teaching in mixed-year classes. Throughout lessons, they check that pupils understand the task.

Leaders ensure that pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported. There are clear procedures in place to identify any barriers to learning. Leaders make sure that pupils with SEND follow the same curriculum as their peers.

Teachers adapt tasks and ensure any misconceptions are resolved before the next lesson. As a result, pupils with SEND achieve well.

Pupils overall behave to a high standard.

In key stage 2, pupils have excellent attitudes to learning. They listen carefully to adults, follow instructions and behave well in lessons. Younger pupils learn these behaviours from older pupils, who act as their role models.

Through the school values, leaders strive to ensure that pupils develop as citizens. They aim for pupils to recognise these values in order for them to live them. Pupils learn about themselves and others.

They have the opportunity to study other religions and visit places of worship. Pupils look at another country each year and explore their cultures and customs. They learn to respect the differences between each other, for example the different make-up of families in modern Britain.

Pupils value the variety of clubs that are available. They are particularly proud to have the opportunity to represent the school in a sporting team competition. Every pupil in key stage 2 has represented the school.

Governors know the school extremely well. Staff's workload is important to them and leaders. Staff work closely together and support each other well.

They appreciate the changes in assessment leaders have made to reduce their workload.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders and staff know pupils and their families well.

Leaders make sure that all staff are well trained. Staff notice any changes that indicate pupils may be at risk, and they report these promptly. They know how to protect pupils and are always vigilant.

Leaders are tenacious in ensuring that pupils and their families receive the support they need. They ensure all actions and outcomes are recorded comprehensively. Pupils are taught to keep safe.

They learn to recognise the risks that they could face in a variety of situations, including online and road safety.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Sometimes, the specific content pupils need to learn in the foundation subjects is obscured by the overarching theme. When this happens, pupils remember activities rather than the knowledge and skills.

They are not always building on prior learning. Leaders need to make sure that teachers implement the curriculum consistently so that pupils know and remember key concepts and build on these as they move through the school.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in April 2013.