Hawthorne Primary and Nursery School

About Hawthorne Primary and Nursery School

Hawthorne Primary and Nursery School is a state-funded, mixed primary school in the Nottinghamshire local authority, serving children from age 3 to 11 in the borough of Gedling. Within its local authority, the school ranks 199th out of 286 primary schools, placing it in the bottom half of the area. The top-performing peers in the same LA include John Blow Primary School, Harworth CofE Academy, and Bunny CofE Primary School, all of which achieve higher ranking scores. Hawthorne itself sits at the very bottom of Gedling’s 32-school ranking, with a percentile of 100. The nearest school rated Outstanding by Ofsted is Hucknall Flying High Academy, located 3.2 kilometres away. With a capacity of 315 and currently 210 pupils on roll, the school is not full, and 21.3 per cent of its pupils are eligible for free school meals, which is above the national average. The school has a nursery provision and is non-denominational, with no religious character.

In its most recent Ofsted inspection, carried out in March 2025, Hawthorne was rated Good overall, with Good ratings for leadership and management, early years provision, and behaviour and attitudes. This marks a significant improvement from its previous graded inspection in 2013, when the school was rated Requires Improvement. At Key Stage 2 in the 2023/24 academic year, 39 per cent of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, well below the local authority average of 61 per cent. In reading, 71 per cent met the expected standard, with an average score of 103, while in writing the same proportion met expectations. Maths was weaker, with 50 per cent at the expected standard and an average score of 101. The proportion of pupils achieving the higher standard was low across all subjects, particularly in writing at 4 per cent and reading at 7 per cent. Nationally, the school ranks in the bottom 10 per cent of primaries for combined attainment.

The school offers a broad range of facilities including a library, playing fields, a sensory room, art studios, an ICT suite, and a forest school, as well as a chapel and dining hall. Sports provision includes football, tennis, cricket, rounders, gymnastics and cross country, while clubs range from eco club and coding to drama, chess, science and gardening. The school supports children with a wide array of SEND needs, including autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language communication needs, and social, emotional and mental health difficulties. For the 2025/26 intake, the school was oversubscribed, receiving 34 applications for 26 places, with 24 first-preference offers made. Parent feedback from a recent Ofsted Parent View survey was largely positive: 97 per cent of respondents agreed their child is happy, and 95 per cent felt their child is safe. This school may suit families looking for a small, improving primary with strong early years provision and a nurturing SEND offer, though academic outcomes are below the local average.

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