Don’t just take our word, here’s what our community says...
Thank you, you guys have been amazing. I am glad I have had you by my side with this family. Boys are lucky to be at such a great supportive school.
Family Support Worker at Bucks Council praising one of our FLO team
I just wanted to say that the behaviour and learning behaviours in Reception, Y2, Y3 and 6 were very impressive across the whole year group. The TAs in Reception, Y2 and Y3 were particularly impressive also. Senior Leader on a tour with another local school
Thank you to you, and the rest of the Governors for providing us with a lovely treat this afternoon. It was very much appreciated after a long day of assessments and teaching and it was wonderful to meet you all.
Lead TA
It was a large school but it clearly felt like a small school community. The Year groups were separated enough but it still felt like they were all together as a community. The lunches were very popular, with the many options & they loved the idea of deli & children choosing their own fillings on the day. Breakfast & after school club was also very popular, they said our times were a lot more than other schools and the opportunities were great. Lots of parents liked the pets & thought they were a great idea. The FLO team & the support they offer was commented upon.
Praise from potential new Reception 2024 parents following a tour
A really great meeting last night, your governance team are working really well, a good balance of support & challenge. Clerking & Governance Professional
William Harding School is a community of pupils and professionals who work together to deliver on their motto “Aim high… work hard…Be kind” and values of Inclusion, Perseverance, Honesty, Respect, Responsibility and Collaboration.
Leadership have developed a culture where everyone checks on everyone to ensure staff wellbeing; people consider other people.
Leaders and staff do not dwell on difficulties but recognise the reality and see emerging problems as an opportunity for changes, improvements and constant learning including from occasional failures.
The Headteacher and her team do not shy from taking risks when they know the decision is the right one.
With such attitude and passionate, dedicated and hard-working staff, the school delivers a high-quality learning experience, pastoral care and develops pupils so that they can become the best version of themselves.
Pupils are supported in every aspect of their educational and emotional needs, and they have high aspiration regarding their future.
There is evidence of SEND pupils making good progress especially in core skills.
The school’s inclusion practice is very strong and there is capacity to engage in educational research therefore William Harding School is in a good place to progress to Flagship in the near future.
I continue to be firmly of the opinion that the school fully meets the standard required by the Inclusion Quality Mark to maintain its status as a Centre of Excellence. I therefore recommend that the school retains its Centre of Excellence status and is reviewed again in 12 months. Inclusion Quality Mark (IQM) assessor October 2023
The Reception environment is very well thought out, each area is clearly defined and allows the children to choose their own activities well - My child was only able to manage a situation as well as she did, due to the behavioural teachings that she received at William Harding. Ultimately, you all prepared her so well, that she could manage this situation perfectly and knew what is unacceptable and when to ask for that help! I'm really grateful and truly for all you taught her. Thanks so much. Year 6 Past Parent
The Preschool children were so calm and focused which is impressive for this time of year - External SCITT student
Thank you for arranging for our flyer to be sent to the parents, we have received a lot of interest as a consequence. On behalf of the group I would like to thank you and anyone else from your school who was involved in this task for their time and cooperation. It is greatly appreciated. Thank you.
5th Aylesbury Scout Group
The Governors would like me to pass on their thanks and congratulations on the EYFS, KS1 and KS2 results that were shared at the Governor meeting recently. The results clearly show the passion and dedication that all teachers and support staff have for our pupils to ensure they have the best quality of teaching available to them and clearly has a positive impact. Staff Governor September 2023
It has been a pleasure to welcome William Harding Year 6 students along to our transition activities at John Colet School. They are a credit to your school and we look forward to welcoming them full time in September. Head of Year 6 - John Colet school
I am writing to thank you for your kind welcome and amazing staff who made me feel so included and safe during my placement. I loved every single minute of it. Ryan was an incredible mentor and I learnt so much from him. He genuinely made me feel so secure in teaching and he made me feel so proud of myself. The class made me fall in love with teaching even more every single day and I wish I could have stayed there longer. They were amazing and so full of personality... Just such wonderful children. The team made me feel so welcome and gave me so much support and help whenever I needed it. From going through lesson plans to helping me with resources, they made my placement experience one of a kind. I'm truly so very grateful for this opportunity I was given and I'm proud I was able to represent the school during my placement. I just wanted to share my positive experience and how it changed my perspective on a lot of things. Thank you to you and your staff for my wonderful 6 weeks. - Student placement teacher in KS2
William Harding is a school where everyone is valued and has a voice. It is not easy for any school to have such a consistent supportive approach to inclusion, let alone for a school as large as William Harding. IQM Assessor
I wanted to thank you both so much for the warm welcome last night and it was a pleasure to clerk for your meeting. What a lovely team you have and an engaged group of Governors. The meeting was well chaired, with efficient reporting. The Safeguarding training was also very well delivered. So thank you so much. Clerk to the Governors following a meeting
I wanted to say thank you for the safeguarding training yesterday. I thoroughly enjoyed it and was absolutely amazed by your knowledge, passion and style of delivery. These subjects sometimes can be dry but you made it very interesting and simple to understand. I am sure other governors felt the same. Governor feedback following Safeguarding training
I was speaking to the mum of the child who hurt her fingers yesterday on the gate. She said the doctor asked who had dressed her fingers because it had been done 'perfectly'. I said to mum that I would pass this on. Well done Mrs Lewis! 🙂
During half term I met a parent of a child who has recently been bereaved. She said that she cannot thank two particular areas of the school enough for their help, support and absolute professionalism during this unbelievably difficult time - those being the FLO Team and in particular Mrs Bicknell and the Front Office for always being so kind, caring and patient with her when the phone was answered and she was overcome with grief.
Just to say I saw on my arrival some amazingly skilled staff working with children struggling to start their day or come in to the building. It was a masterclass!
I spoke to Hannah from Ashmead on Friday and she wanted me to pass on the thanks and praise from the visiting students during their phonics bundle. They were very complimentary of WH! This is great and shows how passionate and dedicated everyone is to the teaching of phonics.
I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who worked with me and the children this year and last year. WHS had become my second home and I will miss everything. I wish you all the best and the school every success for the future. Staff member
I've just listened to a lovely phone message from a Year 3 parent who wanted to send an enormous thank you to Mrs Fuller for all the help she is giving her daughter - Mum really appreciates it.
I just wanted to drop you a note to say how lovely it was to be part of the year 3 trip to Waddesdon Manor yesterday. The children truly showed our school values throughout and I saw members of the public smiling and commenting on how lovely they were. The children showed a keen interest whilst walking around the house, asking many questions and looking out for the items the staff members had asked them to look out for. One of the children in my group said 'This is the best thing ever!' Well done to all the team who organised the trip and to all the staff members who helped support the children in this wonderful learning opportunity. Staff member
I just wanted to tell you how proud of our year 4 children I was during our trip to the cinema today. The children all enjoyed the film and their treats and could be heard giggling throughout the film. Massive thanks to the team for organising and the team who supported the children on their trip. One of the children I was talking to told me they would rate their trip 10/10! Staff member
Please see the link William Harding School Achieves Centre of Excellence Status | IQM (iqmaward.com) which is now on social media regarding our successes.
William Harding is a school where everyone is valued and has a voice. It is not easy for any school to have such a consistent supportive approach to inclusion, let alone for a school as large as William Harding.
Staff our Assessor spoke to felt that the work they do is normal, but it is evident that they go over and beyond what is needed.
The Headteacher and her team should be congratulated on what they have achieved; the needs of the pupils and their families are at the heart of everything.
The Headteacher has a clear vision for inclusion which is shared by the Senior Leadership Team (SLT), the Extended Leadership Team (ELT), staff and Governors.
There is a positive atmosphere to the school. Work in the classrooms is purposeful, with an emphasis on language. The use of phrases like, I do, you do, we do and my turn your turn, help the development of language.
Around the school are a range of school pets and our Assessor saw how these were used motivationally and how they gave calming and time out opportunities for some pupils as well as opportunities for taking on the responsibility for caring for them as Animal Advocates.
At the heart is the needs of the pupils and adaptations are made as and when necessary.
The pupils spoke enthusiastically about the school. They enjoy learning and were really proud to share examples of their work. Pupils from across the ability range spoke about their work. The Learning Objective stickers in their books are clearly understood by them and helped them to explain the work to our Assessor.
Pupils feel safe in the school and were clear about who to go to for help as well as telling our Assessor that they help each other.
The range of opportunities for them to show leadership is extensive.
The school works hard to include parents and recognising the difficulties that many parents have, ensure the Open Classroom opportunities for example, take place just before the end of the day so that addition journeys do not need to be made.
The parents recognise the support that they are given and are full of praise for the work of the Family Liaison Team.
Parents said that there was always someone there to speak to and the school has produced a very clear chart explaining who to approach over what concern.
‘Congratulations on achieving so much for your school and for your pupils and their families’ Comment from Equaliteach for our anti-bullying programme
I just wanted to say what a pleasure it was to have the Year 6 pupils coming down to read us their stories today. The children I had were so polite, they read the stories to my children and they even supported my children in reading them. They had small groups each and swapped around, and then read their stories to the whole class. They were so polite and well-mannered and they really were a credit to the year 6 team. My children really enjoyed having them and they were telling their parents about it on the way home. Thank you for giving my children a lovely experience. Staff Member
'As we come to the end of another incredibly busy year, I wanted to take time to thank you all for your hard work and commitment this year. It has been a fantastic year for the school and I continue to feel proud of all that you have achieved for our fabulous children. They are all a real credit to you. The team effort that I witness from all staff regardless of job role is wonderful to see. I wish you all a well-deserved summer break and I look forward to seeing you all in September’. Sally - Chair of Governors
'I have already sent out my thanks , but now that I feel fully recovered there’s no harm in saying them all again! Thank you and well done all! These are the moments the children always look back on and I am sure you will all now always be remembered! Great team! Couldn’t have done it without you all’. Mrs McCartney, Year Leader
Hi Mrs Sharp, I just wanted to take a moment before the kids move on from your class to say a massive thank you. You have been an incredible teacher who has shown the kids the passion and drive to do well which they so badly needed. My son will definitely miss you and we wish you all the best for the future. Thank you so much'
'Lots of the parents who came to the meetings today said how much their children loved the preschool and all of the staff! Well done Preschool!'
'Just to share - when the Educational Psychologist was in observing yesterday, she mentioned that our Pre-School was 'brilliant', better than a lot of others she has visited. She said all staff were consistent and interacted with the all the children very well.'
'I just wanted to send you all a massive thank you for your support at tonight's disco!! You were all superb from the very second we started to organise it through to the last second! The children certainly had a great time and it was a lovely penultimate send off for them!! You have been superb all year, were tonight and will continue to be for the next three days!’ Mr Stallwood, AHT for year 6
‘I just wanted to say thank you for letting me spend the day with you on Wednesday. A big thanks to Miss Nicholls who put up with me following her around all day! and it was great to meet everybody. Everybody was so friendly and welcoming. I'm looking forward to joining you in September 22’.
'Thank you for your warm welcome. It was also great to see the school in action. I was really impressed with the calm atmosphere and the children being so focused in every classroom that we passed by. It has been an absolute pleasure working with the school over the past four years. I would hope to continue working with you next year. You have all done wonders for the school, and more importantly, the children. I can see it getting better and better with all you continue to do.' PIXL consultant
‘I was so delighted to conduct such a positive assessment. I'm sure we will want to talk to you about promoting your success via our social media channels as well.’ Family First Quality Mark assessment
‘A quick note to say thanks for having us along yesterday. Really appreciate the help you gave us and think it will make a fantastic piece!’ Many thanks, Tom - Sky Sports
‘Morning Everyone,
I just wanted to send a massive thank you to everyone involved yesterday, for your amazing welcome to Ellen White, Sue Smith and the Sky Sports crew. It was a huge success and they all said what a warm and welcoming school we have. The children were all so well behaved and Ellen was really chuffed to be back for the afternoon.
Special thank you to Jordan and Amy for all your help.' Miss Judge
'I wanted to thank you all for everything you do for our pupils. You all play a vital role in the smooth running of our school and the education of our pupils. You are all amazing!
Thank you for your flexibility, your hard work, your dedication, you determination, your creativity, your support for staff and pupils and for going above and beyond every day.
We are all teachers and we all have an enormous impact on the lives of the pupils who attend our school. So on Thank a Teacher Day - I want to say Thank You to you all!!’ Mrs Skinner, IPSL
‘Good afternoon! I’m delighted to officially award you with our Picture News Advocate logo, and to let you know that your testimonial is now live on our Advocate page found here: www.picture-news.co.uk/blog/advocates/. Feel free to share on your website, newsletter or tag us in your social media posts (Facebook: @picturenewsprimary and Twitter: @helppicture). Thank you so much for taking the time to write it for us, your comments were wonderful – we loved hearing all the ways Picture News is used.
Congratulations again!😊
Katie’
Lunches… ‘I just wanted to say how wonderful it is to have the new catering provider Fresh start! The children are really enjoying the lunches and it always looks so beautifully presented and appetising for our children. It has also made my job much easier as I can now concentrate on ensuring that staff are being effective in their duties over lunchtime rather than overseeing the catering.
Thank you again for all your hard work with this, it has made such an amazing difference to our lunchtimes 😊’
'I just wanted to say a big thank you to you all for your work yesterday on the book scrutiny. I was incredibly impressed at the level of professionalism, teamwork and approach that you all demonstrated. It was great to see the leaders supporting less experienced colleagues and everyone listening to each other's points of view. It made me proud to be a part of the WH team.
Well done everyone.
Chair of Governors - Sally Perkins'
'All the children were well behaved and followed instructions. The nursing team also commented about how lovely our members of staff are.' School Nursing Team February 2022
‘I just wanted to say thank you to you and your children for all of the wonderful cards we have received. Having groups back in the library has really lifted the mood of the staff, and everyone has enjoyed welcoming you all in. We’ve displayed a selection of the cards on our wall, and the rest are gracing our staff room.’
‘I am delighted to be part of the team and feel lucky to be in such a lovely school’
‘It was really good to see you over the last two days. Thank you for making me feel so welcome.’ Comment following staff CPD from Phil at Real PE
‘I just wanted to say thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to become a teacher at William Harding. I have really enjoyed this term and learnt a lot. Thank you to yourself, Jordan and Ellie for allowing me to become part of such a great team. ‘
‘A sincere thanks from me to everyone for being professional and focusing on child and staff welfare throughout the pandemic. They have done a brilliant job and they should be commended for their hard work and perseverance. Thanks to you, Abi, Donna as members of the SLT for guiding the school through the difficult times and overcoming all of the challenges. It is reflected in the tremendous amount of progress that the school has made on its improvement journey. It is an ongoing process, and I am confident the school will build further on its strength under your and SLTs leadership’
‘To pass on our heart felt thanks for everything you and your team have achieved over the past 18 months, it’s been quite incredible. I have been lucky enough during my career to witness and be apart of many incredible achievements but the way in which you all managed the school and pupils during and through Covid was remarkable and is my driving reason for wanting to apart of the governing body.’ Governor
‘No words of thanks can reflect the volume of work you as the Headteacher and the Deputy have undertaken this year. You are both very dedicated, enthusiastic and exceptional leaders with a clear vision for William Harding. Walking around yesterday it was obvious to see the calm and purposeful learning environment created by yourselves throughout the school. Once again thank you for everything you both do at William Harding. WH are very lucky to have you both.’ Governor
‘It is clear from my short time with the reception team how dedicated and hardworking they all are to providing the best start in life for all their pupils. It has been both a pleasure and honour working with such a committed team’
‘I would like to thank you all for your help. The replies I have had, and the school website, really live up to the reputation that I had heard.’
'I just wanted to say how well the year 1 children behaved during the vision screening recently. All the children walked through the school perfectly, they were polite and did exactly what was asked of them. I was immensely proud of them and makes my job so much easier. I would also like to thank all the TA's and teachers for helping and making the whole morning run smoothly.'
During our partial lock-down we received lots of support and praise from our local community. Here is our collated praise for you to enjoy.
Fence Art work praise Autumn 2020
"I've retired now and it's been so lovely and inspiring to see the children's work, it brightens my day!" Passer by, December 2020
“It's just so lovely to see their work on my way past! I’ve just seen my granddaughter's picture, she was talking about this the other day, they're just beautiful". Passer by, December 2020