Chipping Hill Primary School

Inspection of Chipping Hill Primary School Owers Road, Witham, Essex CM8 1FR

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The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Good Leadership and management Outstanding Early years provision Outstanding Previous inspection grade Outstanding 5 and 6 November 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils arrive happily at the school each day. They enjoy attending and are met by staff who are pleased to see them. Staff expect the very best from all pupils. Teachers across school take the time to get to know their pupils extremely well. This allows them to adapt their teaching successfully to meet each pupil’s needs. Pupils show enthusiasm and enjoyment when learning. They achieve highly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have a good understanding of what makes healthy relationships and friendships. They have positive working relationships with staff, who support and motivate them. In lessons, and around the school, pupils’ behaviour is exemplary. They have very positive attitudes towards each other and their learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils gain leadership experience from taking on roles and responsibilities in their classrooms and around the school. These range from being a member of the student parliament to play leaders, reading monitors and behaviour gurus. Through these roles pupils make a positive contribution to the school. Pupils benefit from some educational visits. Older pupils were inspired by a recent careers fair. Pupils enjoy clubs organised by the school. However, many of these are predominantly sports related. There are fewer opportunities for pupils with other interests to pursue these.

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

The school’s curriculum is ambitious, clear and coherent. Leaders have made staff training a priority. As a result, teachers have the expertise to deliver every subject very effectively and with enthusiasm and confidence.

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

Children make a very strong start to their learning in the Reception Year. Staff make sure they gather information about what every child knows and can do as soon as they start in Reception. They adapt the curriculum, expertly supporting each child so that the majority have the knowledge they need to learn successfully by the time they join Year 1.

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

Staff train pupils to be inquisitive learners and to ask questions. They provide pupils with regular opportunities to revisit, practise and build on previous learning. This helps pupils to deepen their understanding and contributes to them achieving well. For example, in Reception, children investigate questions such as, ‘Do you need big seeds to grow big plants?’ In their science lessons in Year 2, pupils learn about seed dispersal. By the time they are in Year 5, pupils explore the life cycle of plants in more depth. Teachers continuously check pupils’ understanding, which informs them of what to teach next and how to do so. They identify misconceptions and address them quickly.

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

All pupils are routinely challenged as part of their learning. In mathematics, for example, children in Reception learn to make the number five in different ways in the autumn term. By the spring term, they are expected to be able to do the inverse addition operation to a subtraction. In Year 6, pupils are expected to solve two-step equations. Pupils enjoy being challenged and rise to these high expectations. This contributes to many achieving highly. 5 and 6 November 2024

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The school’s high expectations for achievement include pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders make sure that the needs of pupils with SEND are identified early on. The school ensures there is an emphasis on providing pupils with SEND with the best possible learning alongside their classmates. Pupils with SEND successfully access the full curriculum. When necessary, staff work closely with external professional agencies to support pupils further. This helps ensure that they make the best possible progress in their learning.

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Leaders have made sure that every pupil learns to read. The school wastes no time in getting them started. Reading, including the teaching of phonics, is taught from the beginning of Reception. Pupils at risk of falling behind are identified swiftly and are supported to keep up. The school has developed high levels of staff expertise in the teaching of reading. All staff promote the love of reading. Pupils discuss their favourite authors and books with enthusiasm.

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Leaders ensure that pupils’ attendance is a high priority. When attendance drops for some pupils, the school works closely with families to make sure pupils’ attendance improves rapidly. Pupils are taught how to behave well. The school’s behaviour policy is applied consistently and fairly by all staff. Pupils consistently demonstrate highly positive attitudes and commitment to their learning. They show resilience when they face challenges. They collaborate with each other but also work well independently.

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The school provides pupils with opportunities to enrich their learning. Currently extra- curricular activities are predominantly sports related. Pupils have fewer opportunities to develop their interests and talents in other areas, such as music and the arts.

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Pupils are taught about different family units and about what makes a positive friendship and relationship. Staff teach pupils how to keep safe, including when online.

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Parents and carers are positive about the school. Staff enjoy working here. They say their workload is manageable and appreciate the way leaders look out for their well-being. Governors understand their role and carry this out effectively. They ensure that the school has a clear vision and strategy, and that leaders are challenged and supported well.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school’s current offer for extra-curricular opportunities is limited. Although the school makes clubs available, there is not a wide range of activities on offer. There are fewer opportunities for pupils to engage in extra-curricular activities other than sport. This means that pupils with interests and talents in other areas have fewer opportunities to develop these. The school needs to ensure that a wide, rich set of 5 and 6 November 2024

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experiences are available to pupils, which provide opportunities for pupils to build on their different talents and interests.

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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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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 5 and 6 November 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 15 March 2012, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The school has had a significant change in leadership and staffing since it was last inspected in 2012, including the headteacher and other members of the senior leadership team.  Numbers on roll have increased since the previous inspection. The school is now a two- form entry school.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision for its pupils.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management) and for any relevant provision judgement (early years and/or sixth form provision). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024 will not be given an overall effectiveness grade. 5 and 6 November 2024

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 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors spoke to school leaders including the headteacher, as well as other staff. Inspectors spoke to governors, including the chair of the governing body, as well as a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, science, history and physical education. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects.

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 To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors gathered the views of pupils, parents and staff through discussions. Inspectors also considered the responses to Ofsted’s surveys for staff and parents as well the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments.

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Inspection team

Aliki Constantopoulou, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Susan Sutton Ofsted Inspector 5 and 6 November 2024

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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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