The Uffington Church of England Primary School

Inspection of The Uffington Church of England Primary School School Lane, Uffington, Stamford, Lincolnshire PE9 4SU

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Good

The previous ‘outstanding’ judgement reflected the school’s overall effectiveness in October 2008 under the relevant inspection framework at that time.

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Overall effectiveness Good

The new judgement of ‘good’ reflects the current inspection framework, as well as any changes at the school since the last inspection.

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Overall effectiveness Good

The school has not been inspected for 11 years, which is longer than the five-year maximum interval between inspections. Changes in school effectiveness may have happened at any point in that period. The long time between inspections is because the law changed in 2011; it made outstanding schools exempt from routine inspection. 11–12 February 2020

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a small village school with a warm, family atmosphere. Older pupils are proud to care for the younger ones. They told us that they act as buddies to help look after Reception children if they feel nervous. Pupils understand the meaning of bullying. They say it rarely happens but they are confident staff will handle it well. They know what to do if they have any worries.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Behaviour is good. Pupils of all ages are keen, enthusiastic learners. They achieve well in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6. They are well- rounded individuals who are thoroughly prepared for secondary education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The wide range of extra-curricular activities on offer is impressive. Staff encourage pupils to be ambitious and try as many activities as possible. These include sport, music, nature and the arts. Strong community links enrich pupils’ cultural experiences. For example, local artists help pupils to make their annual contributions to the Stamford Georgian Festival.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and staff promote pupils’ personal development exceptionally well. Pupils are encouraged to develop confidence, self-esteem and a strong work ethic. The ‘Five ways to well-being’ project provides daily opportunities to ‘talk and connect’. This approach effectively promotes pupils’ positive mental health.

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better?

Leaders and staff provide a good quality of education for pupils. The teaching of English and mathematics is strong. Science, history, religious education and personal, social and health education (PSHE) are also taught well. Pupils have a good recall of what they have learned in these subjects. The work staff provide is designed to capture pupils’ interest and make them think hard. It is clear from leaders’ plans and actions that similar improvements are being introduced across all other subjects.

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better?

Reading is a priority at this school. Children in the early years get off to a strong start through the daily phonics sessions. Support is readily provided for those who need to catch up. By the end of Year 2, most pupils are confident readers. However, some of the reading books are in poor condition and are not well matched to pupils’ phonics knowledge. This slows progress for a small number of pupils. Older pupils understand the importance of reading. They know it will help them at secondary school and beyond.

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better?

Teachers have good subject knowledge in mathematics. They quickly notice when pupils do not understand an idea. They use these examples to help pupils understand and improve. Pupils shared work they were proud of with us. They told us they enjoy mathematics and appreciate how a topic is explored over several lessons. They say that this helps them to remember more. 11–12 February 2020

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are fully included in the life of the school. Staff involve parents and carers and other agencies in producing support plans that are well matched to pupils’ needs.

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Leaders and staff have high expectations for pupils’ behaviour. Relationships are strong, and pupils cooperate well to support each other. This means that they make the most of the time in lessons. At playtimes, pupils of all ages play happily and energetically together.

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There is an exceptionally strong focus on promoting pupils’ personal development and positive mental health. This focus is shared by leaders, staff and governors. The school’s Christian values are not superficial. They are embedded in the day-to-day life of the school and enhanced through the effective PSHE curriculum. Pupils benefit from numerous opportunities to take part in community and cultural activities. They develop an understanding of life in modern Britain by taking part in workshops, such as mock elections led by visiting Members of Parliament. Pupils also took part in a thought-provoking workshop about modern slavery. This enabled them to understand the concept of liberty. Pupils learn about a wide range of faiths. They have visited places of worship and learn about many customs and cultures.

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Governors are effective in their roles. They fulfil their statutory duties well and consider staff workload and parents’ views.

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The experienced early years leader and her staff ensure that children have a positive start to school. Early reading and mathematics are a priority. Children in the early years are safe and well cared for. They behave well, responding readily to routines and instructions. Children make the most of the purposeful and interesting range of activities on offer. For example, as part of the current topic about India, they played cooperatively in the ‘Indian restaurant’ role-play area. Some pretended to take orders, while others read from the menu. This developed their language skills.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is a positive culture of care and vigilance for pupils’ safety and well-being. Leaders and staff know the pupils, and the needs of the community, very well. They are aware of the local safeguarding needs and the pressures families face. This led leaders to introduce the mental health project currently running in school. Staff are confident about the procedures for raising concerns about pupils. They waste no time in passing on any issues. Leaders respond quickly to concerns that are raised. Training for all staff and governors is up to date. Employment checks are in line with statutory requirements. 11–12 February 2020

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school’s curriculum is not yet sufficiently coherently planned and sequenced in some subjects. However, it is clear from the actions that leaders have already taken that they are in the process of bringing this about. For this reason, the transition arrangement has been applied in this case. Leaders are in the process of reviewing the curriculum. This is clearly set out in the school development plan. Leaders should ensure that they complete this planned work so that the curriculum is coherently planned and sequenced across all areas.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some of the books provided, especially for the younger pupils, are not easily decodable and are in a poor condition. This means that some pupils do not become confident readers as quickly as they should. Leaders should ensure that all reading books are in good condition and connect closely to pupils’ phonics knowledge, especially for those in the early stages of learning to read or who are experiencing reading difficulties.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to find out what other parents and carers think. We use Ofsted Parent View information when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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How can I feed back my views?

If you are the school and you are not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted .

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. 11–12 February 2020

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School details

Inspection number 10121311 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 22–23 October 2008

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Information about this school

 An inspection of denominational education and collective worship was carried out under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 in May 2018.

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Information about this inspection

We carried out this inspection under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We deemed the inspection a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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Information about this inspection

The previous ‘outstanding’ judgement reflected the school’s overall effectiveness in October 2008 under the relevant inspection framework at that time.

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Information about this inspection

The new judgement of ‘good’ reflects the current inspection framework, as well as any changes at the school since the last inspection.

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Information about this inspection

The school has not been inspected for 11 years, which is longer than the five-year maximum interval between inspections under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Changes in school effectiveness may have happened at any point in that period. The 11–12 February 2020

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long time between inspections is because the law changed in 2011; it made most outstanding schools exempt from routine inspection.

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 We met with the headteacher, the special educational needs coordinator and other curriculum leaders.  I held a meeting with a group of governors, including the chair.  We did deep dives in reading, mathematics, history and science. This involved speaking with leaders, teachers and pupils, visiting lessons, hearing pupils read and examining pupils’ work in books.  We visited lessons and examined pupils’ work across a range of other subjects.  We observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around school.  We evaluated safeguarding by speaking with pupils, staff and governors. We reviewed policies, systems for recording concerns, training records and procedures for checking staff suitability to work with children.

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Inspection team

Christine Watkins, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Liz Moore Ofsted Inspector 11–12 February 2020

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regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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