Upottery Primary School

Upottery Primary School is performing well overall. Pupils are happy, safe and enjoy school, and they typically behave well and attend regularly. Inspectors found effective provision across the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years. Safeguarding arrangements are effective, and pupils benefit from a wide range of clubs, trips and personal development opportunities. The school has improved since its previous inspection. Leaders have reviewed and strengthened the curriculum, and mathematics is a particular strength, with pupils building a deep understanding from Reception onwards. Early reading has also improved significantly, with better training and federation support helping most pupils learn the basics quickly and accurately. The school checks what pupils remember over time and supports pupils who fall behind, while pupils with special educational needs and disabilities are identified swiftly and generally learn well alongside their peers. There are still areas to address. In some subjects, staff do not have the subject knowledge needed to adapt lessons well enough for all pupils, and some writing tasks are too difficult for younger pupils and those with SEND. Pupils who find writing difficult do not always get the support they need to become confident writers, and occasionally some pupils are not fully engaged in lessons. The school is part of the Devon Moors Federation, having joined in April 2024 after a period of formal managed partnership, and this was a graded inspection where no overall effectiveness grade was given.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, safe and enjoy coming to school.
• Pupils typically behave well and attend school regularly.
• The curriculum is ambitious and sets out the knowledge pupils need across all subjects.
• Mathematics is taught well, with pupils building deep understanding from Reception onwards.
• Early reading has been successfully improved, and most pupils learn reading basics quickly and accurately.
• Federation support has strengthened curriculum delivery and staff development.
• The school has a comprehensive approach to checking what pupils remember over time.
• Pupils with SEND are identified swiftly and accurately, and often learn well alongside their peers.
• Reception provides a warm, welcoming start with activities that develop early learning.
• Personal development is well supported through stories, faith weeks, Black History Month and British values.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• Governors are ambitious for the school and proud of recent improvements.

Areas for Improvement

• Some staff lack the subject knowledge needed to adapt lessons effectively for all pupils.
• Some writing activities are too complicated for younger pupils and those with SEND.
• Pupils who find writing difficult do not get the support they need to become confident, fluent writers.
• Occasionally, some pupils are not as engaged with their learning as they could be.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Upottery Primary School attended 96.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 3.6% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 1.2% of pupils at Upottery Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Upottery Primary School had 15.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 10.0% of pupils at Upottery Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.2% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Upottery Primary School received £8,487 and spent £8,757 for each of its 86 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £31,000 (£362 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

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All schools in Honiton · Devon local authority: places and applications

What is Upottery Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Upottery Primary School is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Upottery Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Upottery Primary School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Upottery Primary School have?

Upottery Primary School has 90 pupils on roll.

What age range does Upottery Primary School cover?

Upottery Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Upottery Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 82% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Upottery Primary School?

Upottery Primary School is at Upottery, Honiton, Devon, EX14 9QT.