Highbury Infant School and Nursery

Highbury Infant School and Nursery is performing strongly overall. Safeguarding standards are met, pupils attend well, behaviour is calm and purposeful, and children in the Nursery and Reception benefit from an ambitious early years curriculum. Inclusion is a notable strength: pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils are identified early and receive well-tailored support, and personal development and wellbeing provision is broad and thoughtful. Pupils generally achieve well and are prepared for the next stage of their education. Reading is a priority and phonics is taught well, with effective support for pupils who need to catch up. Leadership has driven considerable improvement, relationships with parents and staff are positive, and governors are committed and fulfil their statutory duties. There are still areas to develop. Teaching is not consistently as strong in a few foundation subjects because some teachers lack the same depth of subject expertise, and the governing board needs to strengthen its knowledge and expertise so it can provide consistent support and robust challenge across all aspects of the school’s work. The school is an infant and nursery school with 195 pupils, and its proportions of pupils eligible for free school meals and pupils with SEND are below national averages.

Strengths

• High attendance with early and effective support for families when issues arise
• Consistently high expectations for behaviour rooted in warm, respectful relationships
• Calm, orderly and purposeful classrooms and social times
• Ambitious and expertly taught early years curriculum across Nursery and Reception
• Strong language and communication development in the early years
• Early identification and well-tailored support for pupils with SEND
• Effective use of pupil premium funding to support disadvantaged pupils
• Well-considered PSHE provision that develops pupils’ knowledge and wellbeing
• Plentiful wider opportunities in arts, music, sport and clubs
• Reading is a priority and phonics is taught well
• Staff are proud to work at the school and leaders manage workload and wellbeing carefully
• Governors are committed and carry out their statutory duties well

Areas for Improvement

• Teaching quality is not consistently high in a few foundation subjects because some teachers lack depth of subject expertise
• The governing board needs to strengthen its knowledge and expertise to provide consistent support and robust challenge across all aspects of the school’s work

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Highbury Infant School and Nursery attended 96.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.6% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.9% of pupils at Highbury Infant School and Nursery were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Highbury Infant School and Nursery had 18.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 28.2% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 11.3% of pupils at Highbury Infant School and Nursery were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.0% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Highbury Infant School and Nursery received £7,305 and spent £7,201 for each of its 189 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £92,000 (£491 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Hitchin · Hertfordshire local authority: places and applications

What is Highbury Infant School and Nursery's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Highbury Infant School and Nursery is Expected standard, from an inspection in October 2026.

When was Highbury Infant School and Nursery last inspected by Ofsted?

Highbury Infant School and Nursery was last inspected in October 2026.

How many pupils does Highbury Infant School and Nursery have?

Highbury Infant School and Nursery has 195 pupils on roll.

What age range does Highbury Infant School and Nursery cover?

Highbury Infant School and Nursery for pupils aged 3 to 7.

Where is Highbury Infant School and Nursery?

Highbury Infant School and Nursery is at Standhill Road, Hitchin, Hertfordshire, SG4 9AG.