Papillon House

Inspection of Papillon House Pebble Close, Tadworth, Surrey KT20 7PA

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Inspection dates: 16 to 18 September 2025

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Sixth-form provision Outstanding Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are thriving in this deeply caring and ambitious school. Warm and nurturing relationships ensure that pupils are joyful, safe and enthusiastic to grow and learn. Expectations are high and behaviour is excellent. Pupils are proud ambassadors for their school. When pupils struggle with emotions, expert care helps them to return to a calm mindset and ready to continue learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has relentlessly high ambitions for all. School life brings out the best in everyone here. Many pupils start the day with high-quality physical activities and support to help them with balance, agility and control. This boosts pupils’ mental and emotional well-being to help them to be ready for the day ahead. Pupils stay healthy and active through lunchtime sports clubs and exciting opportunities to play tennis, go horse riding or attend the local gym.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils achieve their targets well in areas, such as communication, reading, personal development and speech and language. Students in the sixth form achieve a range of awards through a highly developed programme of opportunities. Students are proud to earn qualifications while developing valuable skills to prepare them impressively for the future. For example, students take food orders from staff and then prepare, cook and serve lunch.

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better?

Since the previous inspection, the school has gone from strength to strength. The school has focused successfully on developing its reading programme. Skilful staff teach pupils sounds to help them with early reading. Pupils read well matched and engaging books to motivate them and help them to practise their skills. Many pupils become fluent and confident readers, reading aloud with expression and flair. Some pupils find comprehension tricky, but they share high enthusiasm for the joy of reading across the classes. Reading is also highly therapeutic for pupils who enjoy relaxing with a book in the library.

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better?

This is a highly inclusive school. Staff frequently review, adapt and design support and resources to help pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to access the school’s rich curriculum successfully. The school designs every subject with essential skills and knowledge. Staff adapt tasks to ensure a personalised approach to help pupils thrive across the curriculum. All pupils have autism spectrum disorder and an education, health and care (EHC) plan. Many pupils have speech, language and communication needs. Pupils also have a range of sensory needs, so the school ensures a calm, purposeful and peaceful learning environment for all. Pupils progress well through the curriculum to meet their highly personalised learning targets. Visual aids and prompts provide valuable help. Pupils acquire independence, confidence and self-esteem while developing language skills. Therapy is a strength of the school. Therapeutic specialists work closely with

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better?

teaching staff to offer a joined-up approach that helps pupils to shine and overcome challenges that make learning difficult. 16 to 18 September 2025 Sixth-form provision is exceptional, with frequent reviews of student progress through the curriculum, ensuring that staff tailor tasks to bring out the best in all. Students develop impressive life skills through links with charities, businesses and community groups. They achieve meaningful accreditations through the school’s strong investment in a range of routes that meet individual needs. Some students develop strong skills in writing or mathematics, while others blossom through more vocational activities. Work experience and careers advice show high ambition for everyone. Pupils and students enjoy voluntary work and learn how to handle money and how to conduct themselves in a workplace.

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better?

Teachers and support staff benefit from extensive training opportunities. This ensures that subject knowledge and pedagogical skills are strong. Across the primary and secondary stages, teachers and staff give helpful and tactful feedback to pupils to enhance their learning. On occasion, teachers’ checks on learning do not routinely identify pupils’ misconceptions to directly inform their next learning task. This means that pupils sometimes do not achieve as highly as they could.

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better?

Behaviour around the school is excellent, because of high expectations and well- embedded systems. Pupils feel safe, secure and supported. Staff work closely together to help pupils who become unsettled. When pupils struggle with emotions, staff use patience, skill and expert knowledge to adapt lessons to get them back on track. Pupils attend school highly. Absence rates have decreased impressively for pupils who have struggled to attend school in the past.

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better?

Personal development is extensive and transformative. Pupils learn to celebrate diversity through well-designed assemblies and curriculum activities. Pupils discover a range of faiths and world views. The school’s work to promote equality is strong. The proprietor ensures that the school complies fully with schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010. Pupils learn how to stay safe online. Trips to the miniature steam railway and sites of historical interest enrich pupils’ lives. Pupils learn to swim through a highly prioritised programme. Older pupils and sixth-form students love supporting younger children. They are proud to showcase their skills in assemblies.

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better?

Leaders are dedicated, compassionate and inspirational. The proprietor and managers responsible for governance duties show expertise and care. They challenge each other and hold everyone to account to reflect, evaluate and drive continued improvement. The proprietor ensures that the school meets the independent school standards robustly and securely. The learning environment is highly developed. The school grounds are expertly managed and maintained to make every aspect of school life safe and accessible for all. Parents and carers are unanimous in their praise for the school. One, representing many, said, ‘All staff are knowledgeable, understanding, kind and approachable for both children and parents.’ Staff morale is buoyant. The proprietor and leaders strive to reduce workload and support positive well-being. Staff feel highly supported and incredibly proud to work in this deeply nurturing and successful school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

◼ Occasionally, teachers’ checks on pupils’ understanding do not identify misconceptions precisely enough to inform future learning. This can stop some pupils from achieving highly. The school should ensure that assessment leads to successful adaptations to learning to help all pupils achieve their best across the whole curriculum.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to 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. 16 to 18 September 2025

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School details

Unique reference number 135407 DfE registration number 936/6590

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School details

Inspection number 10391743 Type of school Other Independent Special School

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School details

Gender of pupils in the sixth form Mixed

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form

Annual fees (day pupils) £54,510 to £77,343

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form

Email address admin@papillonhouseschool.co.uk

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form

Dates of previous inspection 29 November to 1 December 2022 16 to 18 September 2025

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Information about this school

◼ Papillon House is an independent special school in Surrey. The school takes pupils from four local authorities. ◼ All pupils at the school have an education, health and care plan where the primary diagnosis is autism spectrum disorder. Most pupils also have associated social and communication difficulties. ◼ The headteacher was appointed substantively in September 2025. She was previously the deputy headteacher. The deputy headteacher was also appointed in September 2025. ◼ The school does not currently use any alternative provision. ◼ The school offers early years provision, but no pupils are currently registered for this provision.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors carried out this inspection under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008. The purpose of the inspection is to advise the Secretary of State for Education about the school’s suitability for continued registration as an independent school.

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Information about this inspection

◼ Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision. ◼ Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. ◼ Inspectors met with the headteacher, proprietor and leaders responsible for curriculum and therapy. ◼ Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, communication, mathematics and personal development. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, 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. ◼ 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

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Information about this inspection

culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first. ◼ Inspectors carried out other activities to check that the school complies with the independent school standards. These included a check on the school premises and scrutiny of school policies. ◼ Inspectors considered responses to the staff surveys as well as responses to Ofsted’s Parent View and free-text responses. ◼ Inspectors spoke to pupils throughout the inspection, including through the subject deep dives. There was a member of school staff present when inspectors 16 to 18 September 2025 spoke with pupils. This did not have an impact on the quality or impartiality of evidence gathered.

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Inspection team

Scott Reece, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Christopher Toye Ofsted Inspector 16 to 18 September 2025 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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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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