Epping Upland CofE Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Epping Upland C of E Primary School Carters Lane, Epping Green, Epping, Essex CM16 6QJ

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Outcome

Epping Upland C of E Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Epping Upland is a warm and welcoming school. Staff care deeply about pupils and want the best for them. As a result, pupils are at the heart of everything they do. Pupils enjoy school and spending time with Bracken, the school dog.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders are ambitious for pupils. This is reflected in the school’s values of trust, compassion, perseverance and responsibility. Pupils understand these values and recognise their importance.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Behaviour is good. Pupils are polite, courteous and respectful. They encourage and support each other in their learning and play. Pupils say that bullying is rare. They are confident that staff would sort out any problems quickly, should they occur.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The overwhelming majority of parents talk in glowing terms about the work of the school. Typical comments include ‘a very kind and warming school’, ‘love how they work with each child’ and ‘help them to be the best they can be’.

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

The school’s curriculum is broad and ambitious. It is well designed and planned. It sets out what pupils will learn across all subjects, at each stage of their education from Reception to year 6. Teachers teach sequences of lessons that help pupils build their knowledge and understanding incrementally over time. In most subjects, pupils easily remember what they have learned. For example, in history, pupils remember key facts about the fire of London, the Romans and the Ancient Egyptians. However, in some subjects, such as science and design technology, the curriculum needs refining so that the building blocks of deep knowledge that pupils need to learn are clearly identified and then systematically taught.

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

Teachers check regularly that pupils understand their learning. Teachers adapt lessons to help move pupils’ learning forward. However, in some of the foundation subjects, such as 14 and 15 June 2022

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history, assessment systems are not sharp enough. Checks on pupils’ learning do not capture what pupils have remembered in the long term.

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Leaders make sure younger pupils quickly learn to read. Daily phonics lessons start in Reception. Teachers consistently use the same approach when teaching lessons. Leaders provide regular training to all adults to give them the skills they need to teach phonics accurately. Pupils are given suitable books to take home to practise their reading. These books are chosen so that pupils do not get stuck on words that are too hard. Pupils are quickly becoming accurate and fluent readers. Teachers work hard to find books all pupils will enjoy. The school’s ‘Beautiful books’ are also chosen carefully to capture pupils’ imagination.

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Pupils behave well in lessons and at breaktimes. Pupils say that on the rare occasions when behaviour needs correcting, staff are quick to act. Pupils respond positively. Leaders take a robust approach to collecting and interpreting accurate behaviour records. This provides staff with the detailed information they need to give personalised and appropriate support to pupils.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported. Leaders precisely know and understand the needs of pupils with SEND. They ensure that pupils are provided with sharply focused teaching and effective pastoral support. This ensures that pupils with SEND learn the same curriculum as their peers.

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Leaders provide a wide range of interesting experiences to support pupils’ wider development. For example, pupils value the clubs offered, such as gardening and singing clubs. Pupils enjoy day trips that bring the curriculum to life, such as museum trips to London.

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Staff appreciate the actions that leaders take in relation to their workload. Staff feel valued and are proud to work in the school. The governing body has an accurate view of the school’s strengths and weaknesses.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that safeguarding is a priority for every member of staff. Training is regular and well planned. Staff know when and how to report concerns if they are worried about a pupil. Designated safeguarding leads know the families and the local area well. They offer support that is considerate and informed. Record-keeping is thorough and up to date. Leaders work with external agencies to ensure that pupils and families receive the help they need to stay safe from harm.

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 In some foundation stage subjects, teachers are assessing the curriculum coverage and not the knowledge that pupils have learned. As a result, subject leaders and teachers do not have a secure enough understanding of the impact of what they have taught on what pupils know and remember. Leaders should ensure that teachers fully implement the curriculum and assess pupils’ acquisition of knowledge. This is so that they have a better understanding of pupils’ achievement across all subjects.

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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 a section 8 inspection of a good or outstanding school, because it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the section 8 inspection as a section 5 inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the second section 8 inspection since we judged the predecessor school, Epping Upland Church of England Primary School, to be good in March 2013.

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View 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. 14 and 15 June 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10238300 Type of school Primary

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School details

Website www.eppinguplandcofeschool.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 18 October 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school joined the Epping Forest Schools Partnership Trust in September 2018.  The school does not use alternative providers.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school had received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders.  The inspector met with the headteacher, teachers, staff, pupils, governors (including the chair of the local governing body) and the chief executive officer.  The inspector listened to pupils from Years 1 and 2 read to a familiar adult.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspector reviewed the school’s safeguarding documentation, including records of safeguarding checks carried out on staff working at the school. He considered how well 14 and 15 June 2022

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the designated safeguarding lead acts on concerns about pupils’ safety and welfare. The inspector spoke to pupils, staff and governors about safeguarding practices.  The inspector considered the 40 responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, 39 free-text comments also took into consideration the 19 responses to the staff survey.

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Inspection team

Joseph Figg, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 14 and 15 June 2022

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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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