Harpley CofE VC Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 13 January 2026

Harpley CofE VC Primary School is at the heart of the village community it serves. There are warm, positive relationships between staff and pupils. Pupils enjoy coming to school. They feel safe and know adults will listen if they ever feel worried. Over time, pupils have not achieved as well as they could. Too many leave school not academically ready for secondary school. There are early signs that achievement is starting to improve. However, there remains significant work to do to ensure that pupils consistently reach their full academic potential and gain the knowledge they need for their next stage of education. The school places high importance on supporting pupils’ wellbeing. This helps pupils to break down barriers to attending school and to access school more confidently. As a result of this focused work, pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, generally attend well and arrive in school ready to learn. Behaviour in and around school is positive. Pupils interact with each other in a friendly way. Older and younger pupils get along well together, playing games happily in the playground. Bullying is rare and is dealt with effectively. Behaviour in class is calm and generally well managed. Most pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to their learning. Pupils contribute meaningfully to the local community. They eagerly represent the school at events and act as positive role models in fulfilling these responsibilities. For example, pupils contribute to church services, such as the Harvest Festival and raise money for local charities.

What the school should improve

• Leaders should further train and support staff to teach the curriculum with confidence and clarity. They should ensure that classroom practice more consistently meets the needs of different learners in the school’s mixed-age classes. • Leaders should ensure that pupils consistently receive precise and timely checks on work and learning to address gaps in key knowledge quickly and effectively. • Governors should be more rigorous and robust in challenging school leaders over key improvement priorities, such as curriculum implementation, achievement and attendance. • Leaders should continue to monitor and support pupils to secure sustained, strong attendance. This is particularly the case for those pupils who do not attend as well as they could.

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