Upton Meadows Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.

Pupils' progress is getting stronger across the school. Standards at the end of Key Stage 2 have risen appreciably in English and mathematics. From their starting points, pupils make good progress and achieve well.

Children in the Reception Year achieve well, thanks to a well-planned and well-taught range of stimulating activities. Good teaching contributes effectively to pupils' good progress over time. Teachers and other adults maintain pupils' interest in their learning.

Pupils are keen to learn and their behaviour is good. They get on well with each other and feel safe at school. Leaders and the governing body continue to se...cure improvement in teaching and pupils' achievement.

As a result, the school has sustained rising standards at the end of Key Stage 1 and has strongly improved them at the end of Key Stage 2. The priorities set by senior leaders and the governing body are the right ones to take the school further forward. The senior leaders and the governing body are pursuing them with vigour.

The range of subjects and activities planned for pupils contributes well to their achievement in basic skills, as well as broadening their overall learning. Most parents are satisfied with what the school does for their children. It is not yet an outstanding school because : The checks teachers make on pupils' progress in lessons are not always careful enough to help them to do better, particularly for a few of the disadvantaged pupils.

Occasionally teachers accept written work that is not well presented and pupils' skills in writing longer pieces of work are not as strong as in other aspects of writing. The pupils who speak English as an additional language are not always helped to understand fully what they are reading. A few parents feel that they are not kept well informed about the work of the school and that their concerns are not always listened to.

Information about this school

The school is larger than the average-sized primary school. The number of pupils has grown by 50% since the previous inspection. The large majority of pupils are from White British backgrounds.

A small minority comes from a wider range of minority ethnic groups and a very small minority speaks English as an additional language. The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is above average. The proportion of pupils supported by the pupil premium is above average.

This is extra founding provided by the government to support pupils who are known to be or have been eligible for free school meals and those cared for by the local authority. The school meets the government's current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils' attainment and progress at the end of Year 6. The school has been receiving support from Hopping Hill Primary School over the previous nine months.

The school has experienced many staff changes, particularly at the senior levels. The headteacher joined in September 2013 and the deputy headteacher took up her post a term in April 2014. The two assistant teachers and the leader for the Early Years Foundation Stage joined in September 2014.

The Key Stage 1 leader took up her new position in September 2014. Three class teachers and three teaching assistants also joined at the start of this term. The new Chair of the Governing Body was appointed from September 2014.