The Hills Academy

The Hills Academy is performing well overall, achieving a 'Good' rating across all inspected areas, indicating effective leadership and a positive learning environment. The school has demonstrated notable strengths in promoting pupils' personal development and fostering high expectations for behaviour, with students feeling safe and supported. The curriculum is ambitious in several subjects, and the school has implemented structured phonics teaching that helps pupils read confidently. However, there are concerns regarding the coherence and sequence of the curriculum in certain subjects, with some pupils lacking a secure understanding of key concepts.

Strengths

• Pupils exhibit strong behaviour and attitudes towards learning.
• The curriculum is well-planned and ambitious in most subjects.
• Reading initiatives are effective, enabling confident reading among pupils.
• Pupils feel safe and are well-supported in their emotional well-being.
• There is strong support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum planning is not consistently effective across all subjects.
• Some pupils have gaps in knowledge due to disconnected teaching in certain areas.
• Not all curriculum leaders are equipped to improve teaching quality.

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 The Hills Academy attended 96.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.9% 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 The Hills Academy 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 The Hills Academy had 19.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 21.7% 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, 5.0% of pupils at The Hills Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.5% 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 2024–25 The Hills Academy received £6,346 and spent £6,341 for each of its 428 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £781,000 (£1,825 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 Bedford · Bedford local authority: places and applications

What is The Hills Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Hills Academy is Good, from an inspection in April 2025.

When was The Hills Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

The Hills Academy was last inspected in April 2025.

How many pupils does The Hills Academy have?

The Hills Academy has 442 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Hills Academy cover?

The Hills Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are The Hills Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 63% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is The Hills Academy?

The Hills Academy is at Stancliffe Road, Bedford, Bedfordshire, MK41 9AT.