A headteacher who was praised for telling pupils they were more “special and unique” than exam results might indicate has found Ofsted inspectors harder to win over, after the watchdog graded her school as inadequate for poor teaching and results.

Inspectors who visited Barrowford primary school in Lancashire said the fact that Rachel Tomlinson “emphasised developing pupils’ emotional and social wellbeing more than the attainment of high standards” was one of the reasons the school had “serious weaknesses”.

Tomlinson’s post-exam letter to pupils at the Nelson school went viral in 2014 because of its heartwarming message that “the scores you get will tell you something but they will not tell you everything”.

But the school – which also attracted controversy for being “sanction-free” and barring teachers from raising their voices – failed to convince inspectors, who gave the school its lowest rating after a no-notice visit in July. In 2012, the school was rated as good.

Inspectors were particularly critical of the school’s teaching. “Teaching is inadequate,” they said. “Staff expectations of what pupils can achieve are not high enough. Some staff do not give enough attention to teaching the basic skills of reading, writing and mathematics.”

Inspectors said pupils did not do as well as they should in assessments for children aged seven and 11. They said: “Staff do not ensure pupils complete work to a high standard. In some classrooms, there is very little direction set for pupils on how to do their best or celebration of what they have achieved. Some pupils told inspectors that ‘no one minds if we don’t do our best work’.”

Tomlinson was widely praised for her message to 11-year-old pupils who had sat their key stage two exams, telling them: “The people who create these tests and score them do not know each of you – the way your teachers do, the way I hope to, and certainly not the way your families do.

“They do not know that many of you speak two languages. They do not know that you can play a musical instrument or that you can dance or paint a picture. They do not know that your friends count on you to be there for them or that your laughter can brighten the dreariest day.”

Ofsted said behaviour at the school required improvement. “Although the school promotes pupils ‘loving to learn’, it was not evident in all classes,” the report notes. While pupils were “polite and friendly”, inspectors reported concerns about bullying.

Tomlinson sent a letter to parents after the Ofsted report was published, telling them: “We were, of course, very disappointed with the outcome and understand that many of you will have concerns … We have worked very hard to bring about continued positive change and we know that you will see this reflected in your children.”