Hardwick Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 27 February 2024

This is a school that sits at the heart of its local community. Pupils have a strong sense of belonging to their school. They learn about differences and the importance of respect and tolerance. This helps pupils to develop respectful relationships with adults and each other. Pupils show compassion towards each other. They know this is a school where they learn to, 'accept ourselves and accept each other'. Pupils behave well throughout the school day. They understand the new approaches to managing behaviour. Staff are consistent in the way they encourage pupils to behave. This helps pupils to know what staff expect of them. Typically, pupils work hard in lessons to achieve teachers' high ambitions. The playground is an enjoyable place for pupils of different ages to play together. For many pupils, playing games on the multi-use games area, with sports coaches is a highlight of the school. Digital leaders, school councillors and librarians are proud of their roles as leaders. These roles help to teach pupils the importance of being responsible. Pupils are enthusiastic to represent their school. They are proud to perform on stage or compete at sporting events. These include netball, girls' football tournaments and swimming galas.

What the school should improve

• The new approaches to teaching writing are recently established. Occasionally, pupils do not consistently apply what they learn in English lessons into their independent writing. Sometimes, pupils' writing is brief and not as detailed as the school expects. The school should ensure staff have the expertise and guidance they need to effectively teach the new approaches to writing.
• There have been some changes to subject leadership. In some subjects, monitoring is in its infancy. This means there are some areas where the school is only recently getting to grips with where leaders may need additional training and support. The school should ensure all subject leaders have the ongoing training and guidance they need to evaluate how well pupils are securing their understanding of important content and knowledge.

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