Lark Hill Community Primary School, Salford

Ofsted's report card from its 10 February 2026 inspection grades Lark Hill Community Primary School on 7 areas: 7 needs attention. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Achievement - Needs attention. "Over time, pupils' achievement in national tests has been below average."

Attendance and behaviour - Needs attention. "Over time, pupils' attendance has been low."

Curriculum and teaching - Needs attention. "In some subjects and year groups, the curriculum is not taught consistently well."

Early years - Needs attention. "The quality of teaching in the early years is inconsistent, including in the teaching of phonics."

Inclusion - Needs attention. "There are inconsistencies in the ways staff adapt their teaching and the curriculum to support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)."

Leadership and governance - Needs attention. "Leaders' plans to improve the school lack some precision."

Personal development and wellbeing - Needs attention. "Some pupils do not benefit as much as they should from the personal development programme because it is not delivered consistently well."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Governors and leaders should ensure that leaders at all levels have clear analysis and sharp oversight of the impact of their work to support pupils, including different pupil groups, in order to enable accurate identification of key priorities and acceleration of the rate of school improvement"; "Leaders should refine their use of attendance data to identify patterns and improve attendance further"; "Leaders should ensure that across subjects the curriculum is implemented consistently well, including for specialist classes, early years and in personal, social and health education. Leaders should ensure that adaptations identified for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are consistently implemented"; "Leaders should ensure that gaps in pupils' foundational knowledge close quickly and securely, and that teachers' checks on pupils' knowledge are sharpened and misconceptions are identified quickly and tackled effectively"; "Leaders should ensure that all staff, especially in the early years, engage in high-quality interactions that deepen children's understanding and vocabulary"; "Leaders should continue to tackle low level disruption that interrupts pupils' learning".

In 2025, 78% of Year 6 pupils at Lark Hill Community Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 67% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 75% and 73% in Salford and 77% and 75% across England.

Results rose from 70% in reading and 63% in maths in 2024.

For September 2026 entry, 59 families put Lark Hill Community Primary School as their first choice and 126 named it as one of their preferences, for 79 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.

The nearest other state primary schools to Lark Hill Community Primary School are Holy Family VA RC Primary School (0.4 miles, Outstanding, 66% reading, 52% maths); Willow Tree Primary School (0.4 miles, Good, 73% reading, 78% maths); St Paul's CofE Primary School (0.4 miles, Good, 71% reading, 74% maths); and Primrose Hill Primary School and Children's Centre (0.7 miles, Good, 74% reading, 84% maths).

Lark Hill Community Primary School's 2025 results were higher than 1 of these 4 schools.

11 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Lark Hill Community Primary School (as of April 2026): 46% would recommend the school, 64% say their child is happy there and 0% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.

The strongest agreement was that their child is happy at the school (64%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (0%).

54.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 45.2% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The largest ethnic groups are White British (30%), Mixed (25%) and Black (15%).

In 2026, 127 pupils (20.2%) received SEN support and 39 (6.2%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is speech, language and communication needs.

Lark Hill Community Primary School has a resourced provision for social, emotional and mental health needs: 14 places, 9 pupils on roll.

Lark Hill Community Primary School had 37 teachers in 2026, one for every 16 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.

The nearest tram or metro stop is Langworthy (Manchester Metrolink), about 590 metres away (roughly a 7-minute walk).

9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Fitzwarren Street (near), 50 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Lark Hill Community Primary School stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In 2024/25, Lark Hill Community Primary School issued 14 suspensions, 2.2 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The secondary schools closest to Lark Hill Community Primary School are Oasis Academy MediaCityUK (0.6 miles), AldridgeUTC@MediaCityUK (0.7 miles), The Albion Academy (0.9 miles) and Buile Hill Academy (0.9 miles).