Thornhill Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 24 March 2026

Pupils step into school each morning with happy smiles. Staff know pupils well and greet them warmly. This ensures that pupils feel welcomed and valued. They enjoy opportunities to share their views and contribute to school life. For example, pupils help to choose the extensive range of playtime equipment, books for the library and attendance rewards. Pupils behave well. They are proud of their responsibilities, such as monitors and as ‘O-pals’. This supports pupils' confidence, resilience and their sense of belonging. Pupils value the range of clubs on offer, including sporting, creative and performance activities. A high proportion of parents and carers praise the efforts staff make to help their children and families. Pupils benefit from effective pastoral care. Leaders and staff care deeply about pupils, their families and the community they serve. Staff notice subtle changes in pupils' mood or behaviour and respond with empathy. Starting in the early years, children feel safe because of the positive and trusting relationships staff form with them. Consequently, pupils are not worried about bullying or unkindness. They know that staff will resolve any issues or worries quickly and effectively. Over time, pupils have not achieved as well as they should at the end of key stage 2. Leaders have put in place well-considered systems and effective interventions to address this. Older pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are beginning to secure core skills in reading, writing and mathematics. However, these improvements are at an early stage. Pupils develop a secure understanding of the wider world. They demonstrate the importance of tolerance and personal responsibility through the care that they show for each other. One pupil captured the views of many, saying, ‘the colour of our skin or what we look like does not matter because we are all equal.’

What the school should improve

• Leaders should ensure that staff have the expertise to make timely adjustments in teaching, so that disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities benefit from the support that they need to access the curriculum equally well in all subjects.
• Leaders should ensure that teachers check for, and address, any gaps in pupils’ knowledge, including their phonics knowledge, with precision, so that pupils' learning builds securely in all subjects.
• Leaders should continue to take effective action to address any gaps in older pupils' knowledge of reading, writing and mathematics, so that these pupils achieve highly and leave school well prepared for the next stage of their education.
• Leaders should continue to reduce rates of persistent absence for disadvantaged pupils and for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, so that they benefit from all that the school has to offer.
• Leaders should continue to embed the improvements they have made to ensure consistently high standards across the school, particularly in pupils’ achievement.

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