Hillside Primary School

Hillside Primary School is a larger-than-average primary in Ipswich, part of the Active Learning Trust, serving a diverse community with a high proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals. Inspectors found the school is performing at the expected standard overall. It is a welcoming, inclusive place where pupils feel safe and valued, attendance has improved to close to national averages, and behaviour is calm and orderly. Early years provision is well organised, and leaders have established effective support for pupils with SEND and those new to English, working closely with families and external agencies. Personal development is a notable strength, with strong pastoral care, a broad range of opportunities, and clear work on safety and aspirations.

Strengths

• A welcoming, inclusive school where pupils feel safe and valued.
• Strong pastoral support and effective relationships with families.
• Leaders have successfully improved attendance, which is now close to the national average.
• Pupils behave well, disruption is rare, and bullying is dealt with quickly and fairly.
• Early years provision is well organised, with nurturing relationships and purposeful activities.
• Leaders identify pupils' needs early and provide effective support, including for SEND and pupils new to English.
• The curriculum and wider opportunities develop pupils' confidence, aspirations and understanding of safety and modern Britain.
• Trust leaders provide effective support and challenge, strengthening quality assurance and improvement.
• Staff feel well supported and benefit from professional development.
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of trips, clubs and careers-related experiences.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils' achievement in reading at the end of key stage 2 and in the Year 1 phonics screening check remains below national averages.
• Some older pupils have gaps in basic knowledge and skills in reading and writing, limiting their access to new learning.
• Teaching is not consistently effective, with variability in explanations, questioning and task design.
• Classroom adaptations for pupils with SEND are not consistently embedded, so some do not access learning as successfully as they could.
• Opportunities to extend children's language, communication and thinking in the early years are sometimes missed.
• Some support staff report needing further training and guidance to meet pupils' needs confidently.
• Support and intervention help many pupils catch up, but this is not always embedded over time.
• Pupils' achievement varies across year groups due to inconsistencies in teaching.

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 Hillside Primary School attended 93.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 21.0% 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, 0.7% of pupils at Hillside Primary School 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 Hillside Primary School had 23.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 26.7% 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, 14.4% of pupils at Hillside Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.7% 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 Hillside Primary School received £7,538 and spent £7,972 for each of its 414 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £493,000 (£1,192 per pupil).

Across all 18 schools of The Active Learning Trust Limited, income was £8,366 and spending £8,624 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 Ipswich · Suffolk local authority: places and applications

Hillside Primary School is part of The Active Learning Trust Limited, which runs 21 schools. The nearest others:

• Chantry Academy Ipswich
• Gusford Community Primary School Ipswich
• Sidegate Primary School Ipswich
• Reydon Primary School Southwold
• The Albert Pye Community Primary School Beccles
• Ravensmere Infant School Beccles
• Loddon Junior School Norwich
• Loddon Infant and Nursery School Norwich
• Grove Primary School Lowestoft
• Pakefield Primary School Lowestoft

What is Hillside Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Hillside Primary School is Needs attention, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Hillside Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Hillside Primary School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Hillside Primary School have?

Hillside Primary School has 402 pupils on roll.

What age range does Hillside Primary School cover?

Hillside Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Hillside Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 53% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Hillside Primary School?

Hillside Primary School is at Belstead Avenue, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 8NU.