Hilltop Infant School

Hilltop Infant School is a welcoming, nurturing and highly effective school where pupils thrive. Inspectors found exceptional behaviour, exemplary personal development and a rich, ambitious curriculum that helps pupils achieve well and prepares them strongly for the next stage. Reading and phonics are prioritised effectively, pupils with SEND are identified swiftly and supported to achieve, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. Leadership and governance are highly ambitious, with strong trust support and constructive challenge. The school was previously judged outstanding as a predecessor school before converting to academy status, but this was its first section 5 inspection. It is part of the HEARTS multi-academy trust and has not been given an overall effectiveness grade because schools inspected from September 2024 no longer receive one. Almost all key judgements were outstanding, while early years provision was good. The main area for improvement is early years, where some activities do not consistently reflect the ambition of the intended curriculum, leading to occasional variation in the quality of learning. Early language development is also occasionally less consistent, although leaders have appropriate plans in place. Overall, the school is performing at a very high level with only this focused early years development point identified.

Strengths

• Welcoming and nurturing community where pupils feel safe and are kept safe
• Pupils behave exceptionally well, and learning is not disrupted
• Rich, ambitious curriculum with clearly sequenced knowledge across subjects
• Pupils achieve well, produce high-quality work and are well prepared for the next stage
• Strong phonics and reading provision with books closely matched to pupils' sounds
• Pupils with SEND are swiftly identified and achieve well from their starting points
• Exemplary personal development, including health, online safety and responsibility
• Wide range of visits, visitors and HEARTS Promise activities develop pupils' talents and interests
• Strong attendance and particular success in reducing persistent absence
• Highly ambitious leadership and governance with effective trust support and challenge
• Staff feel well supported, and workload and well-being are considered
• Effective safeguarding arrangements

Areas for Improvement

• Some early years tasks and activities do not fully reflect the ambition of the intended curriculum
• Occasional variation in the quality of learning in early years because activities are not consistently purposeful
• Early language development opportunities in early years are occasionally less consistent

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 Hilltop Infant School attended 95.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 7.0% 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, 1.0% of pupils at Hilltop Infant 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 Hilltop Infant School had 26.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 22.2% 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, 7.6% of pupils at Hilltop Infant School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.1% 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 Hilltop Infant School received £6,811 and spent £6,672 for each of its 195 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £274,000 (£1,407 per pupil).

Across all 6 schools of Hearts Academy Trust, income was £9,105 and spending £8,802 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 Wickford · Essex local authority: places and applications

Hilltop Infant School is part of Hearts Academy Trust, which runs 6 schools. The nearest others:

• Hilltop Junior School Wickford
• The Wickford Church of England School Wickford
• Briscoe Primary School & Nursery Basildon
• Waterman Primary School Rochford
• Stambridge Primary School Rochford

What is Hilltop Infant School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Hilltop Infant School is Outstanding, from an inspection in December 2024.

When was Hilltop Infant School last inspected by Ofsted?

Hilltop Infant School was last inspected in December 2024.

How many pupils does Hilltop Infant School have?

Hilltop Infant School has 237 pupils on roll.

What age range does Hilltop Infant School cover?

Hilltop Infant School for pupils aged 2 to 7.

Where is Hilltop Infant School?

Hilltop Infant School is at Hill Avenue, Wickford, Essex, SS11 8LT.