Hackwood Primary Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 5 March 2024

This is an inclusive and happy school where pupils succeed. Leaders have created an ethos that encourages and supports pupils to achieve their aspirations. Pupils are happy and say that they feel safe at school. They know that staff care about them. Pupils know who to talk to if they have any worries. Staff have high expectations of pupils' behaviour. Most pupils rise to the challenge and behave well. They play well together during social times. Incidents of bullying are dealt with swiftly. Pupils' wider development underpins all school activities. Pupils take the school pledges seriously. For example, by being a fundraiser. They value their leadership roles, including the school council and reading buddies. The reading ambassadors speak confidently about supporting with the school's planning for world book day. Staff typically have high expectations of what pupils can achieve. The majority of pupils achieve well. However, some pupils do not gain the knowledge they should across the curriculum. Most parents and carers have positive views of the school. They recognise that since the school opened as a brand-new school, it has had to grow and develop. One parent spoke for many when they described the school as, 'bringing the community together'.

What the school should improve

• Too many pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those who have SEND, are regularly absent. These pupils miss too much of their education. The school needs to continue to develop the work with children and their families to ensure that all pupils attend school regularly.
• In some foundation subjects, learning activities are not focused sharply enough on the key knowledge that pupils should learn. This leads to some pupils not securely learning knowledge in all of the subjects they study. The school should ensure that the curriculum is successfully implemented in all subjects so that pupils can build their knowledge over time and remember what they have learned.
• Pupils do not have a depth of knowledge of the protected characteristics or fundamental British values. Consequently, they are not as prepared as they should be for some aspects of life in modern Britain. The school needs to ensure that the curriculum supports pupils to develop an understanding of equality and British values.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)