Hardwick and Cambourne Community Primary School

About Hardwick and Cambourne Community Primary School

Hardwick and Cambourne Community Primary School is a large state primary in South Cambridgeshire, currently home to 570 pupils against a capacity of 735, so there is room for growth. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 19.6%, which is notably higher than the national average for primary schools and suggests a more diverse socioeconomic intake than many local peers. Demand is strong: for the 2025/26 intake, the school received 104 applications for 55 places, with 54 of those coming as first preferences, giving an oversubscription ratio of 1.89. That means nearly two families applied for every place, a clear signal of local popularity. The school is mixed, non-religious, and serves ages 4 to 11, with nursery provision available for younger children. Headteacher Cate Oxley-Thompson leads a team that has maintained a Good rating from Ofsted since at least 2012, with the most recent ungraded inspection in 2021 confirming the school remains Good.

Academically, the school's Key Stage 2 results for 2023/24 show a mixed picture. The proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined is 62%, which sits just above the local authority average of 58%. However, within individual subjects, performance varies: 85% of pupils met the expected standard in reading and 74% in maths, while writing lagged at 70%. At the higher standard, reading stands out with 41% of pupils achieving it, compared with 24% in maths and just 13% in writing. The average scaled scores are 108 for reading and 105 for maths, both above the national benchmark of 100. In the local authority rankings, the school places 32nd out of 55 primaries, placing it in the bottom half of South Cambridgeshire, and nationally it sits around the 53rd percentile. Progress scores are not available in the data, so it is difficult to say how much value the school adds relative to starting points.

The school offers a solid range of facilities, including an ICT suite, art studios, a sports hall, a gymnasium, a library, playing fields, and a forest school, which supports outdoor learning. Sports on offer include football, netball, athletics and dance, while clubs extend to drama, science, coding, art and film. For families with children who have additional needs, the school lists provisions for specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social and emotional mental health needs, speech and language communication needs, hearing impairment, physical disability, and autistic spectrum disorder. With its above-average FSM intake and broad SEND support, this is a school that appears well-suited to families looking for an inclusive, community-focused primary that is oversubscribed but not at capacity. The lack of a sixth form is standard for a primary, and the nursery provision makes it a convenient choice for families with younger siblings.

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