Copperfield Academy

Copperfield Academy is a large primary school within Reach2 Academy Trust, with a 20-place specially resourced provision for pupils with autism. Inspectors found a highly positive school culture in which pupils are respectful, self-disciplined and proud of their school, and safeguarding standards are met. Attendance and behaviour are particular strengths: pupils attend well, classrooms are calm and purposeful, and staff apply a consistent approach supported by expert training. Pupils say bullying and prejudicial language are never tolerated, and peer mediators help resolve disagreements.

Strengths

• Highly positive culture of mutual respect, with pupils showing impressive self-discipline and pride in their conduct.
• Consistent, well-embedded behaviour approach supported by expert staff training.
• Calm, purposeful classrooms where pupils are resilient and aspire to learn.
• Pupils confidently say bullying and prejudicial language are never tolerated.
• Strong pastoral and peer support, including peer mediators and welcoming playtimes.
• Attendance remains high, with effective mentoring and support for pupils and families facing barriers.
• Broad, well-sequenced curriculum with effective teaching and strong subject knowledge.
• Reading is a strength, with effective phonics teaching and targeted support to close gaps.
• Inclusion is effective: needs are identified quickly, plans are personalised, and SEND and pupil premium funding are monitored well.
• Leadership and governance are ambitious and focused on disadvantaged pupils, pupils with SEND and vulnerable pupils, while also supporting staff wellbeing.
• Personal development is broad, including clubs, careers role models, wellbeing support and innovative community policing work.
• Early years provides secure foundations, rich vocabulary and effective transition arrangements.
• Pupils achieve well overall, with disadvantaged pupils often performing as well as their peers nationally.

Areas for Improvement

• Staff in early years sometimes lack the expertise to maximise learning during free-choice activities.
• Leaders should build early years staff expertise to improve children's access to outdoor learning.
• Spelling and grammar skills are not consistently applied across subjects outside English lessons.
• Some pupils, especially disadvantaged pupils, do not achieve well in end-of-Year 6 grammar, punctuation and spelling assessments.
• Leaders should refine the teaching of spelling and grammar across the curriculum to better support writing achievement.

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 Copperfield Academy attended 94.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 17.9% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Copperfield Academy 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 Copperfield Academy had 22.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.8% 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, 5.4% of pupils at Copperfield Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.7% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 15 pupils.

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 Copperfield Academy received £7,357 and spent £6,968 for each of its 455 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £104,000 (£228 per pupil).

Across all 65 schools of Reach2 Academy Trust, income was £7,346 and spending £7,105 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Gravesend · Kent local authority: places and applications

Copperfield Academy is part of Reach2 Academy Trust, which runs 65 schools. The nearest others:

• Tymberwood Academy Gravesend
• Purfleet Primary Academy Purfleet-On-Thames
• Brampton Primary Academy Bexleyheath
• Langtons Junior Academy Hornchurch
• Concordia Academy Romford
• Dorothy Barley Junior Academy Dagenham
• Tidemill Academy London
• Chigwell Primary Academy Chigwell
• Kemsley Primary Academy Sittingbourne
• Milton Court Primary Academy Sittingbourne

What is Copperfield Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Copperfield Academy is Expected standard, from an inspection in February 2026.

When was Copperfield Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Copperfield Academy was last inspected in February 2026.

How many pupils does Copperfield Academy have?

Copperfield Academy has 459 pupils on roll.

What age range does Copperfield Academy cover?

Copperfield Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Copperfield Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 72% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Copperfield Academy?

Copperfield Academy is at Dover Road East, Northfleet, Gravesend, Kent, DA11 0RB.