Lift Hamford

Hamford Primary Academy is performing well, achieving a 'Good' rating across all inspection domains. The school has made significant improvements since its last inspection, providing a calm and orderly environment where pupils can thrive, feel safe, and enjoy learning. Pupils demonstrate positive attitudes, respect for diversity, and are actively engaged in school life, contributing through councils and leadership teams. The ambitious curriculum allows for a broad range of subjects, with strong support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). However, there are areas of the curriculum that require further development and a focus on ensuring consistent implementation across all subjects.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy school life and feel safe.
• The curriculum is ambitious and includes all pupils.
• Pupils are well supported, especially those with SEND.
• Leaders have high expectations for behavior, leading to improved attendance.
• There is a strong reading curriculum that fosters confidence in literacy.

Areas for Improvement

• Some curriculum plans need more detailed development.
• Not all teachers effectively use the improved curriculum plans.
• A small number of pupils, including those with SEND, are persistently absent.

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 Lift Hamford attended 93.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 18.1% 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, 1.1% of pupils at Lift Hamford 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 Lift Hamford had 22.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 14.7% 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, 18.3% of pupils at Lift Hamford were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.3% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 6 pupils.

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 2024–25 Lift Hamford received £7,083 and spent £7,439 for each of its 380 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £305,000 (£803 per pupil).

Across all 59 schools of Lift Schools, income was £8,746 and spending £8,644 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Tendring · Essex local authority: places and applications

Lift Hamford is part of Lift Schools, which runs 62 schools. The nearest others:

• Lift Tendring Frinton-On-Sea
• Lift Clacton Clacton On Sea
• Lift New Rickstones Witham
• Lift Maltings Witham
• Lift Ashingdon Rochford
• Lift Greensward Hockley
• Lift Plumberow Hockley
• Lift Westerings Hockley
• Lift Hockley Hockley
• Lift St James the Great East Malling

What is Lift Hamford's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Lift Hamford is Good, from an inspection in January 2023.

When was Lift Hamford last inspected by Ofsted?

Lift Hamford was last inspected in January 2023.

How many pupils does Lift Hamford have?

Lift Hamford has 393 pupils on roll.

What age range does Lift Hamford cover?

Lift Hamford for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Lift Hamford's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 55% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Lift Hamford?

Lift Hamford is at Elm Tree Avenue, Walton on the Naze, Essex, CO14 8TE.