Highgate Infant School

Highgate Infant School is a small infant school in King’s Lynn, part of Unity Education Trust, and it continues to perform well. Pupils are happy, safe and successful because staff are caring, knowledgeable and know pupils well. The curriculum is logically sequenced, teachers use expert subject knowledge, reading is taught systematically from the start, and pupils with SEND are well supported and included. Behaviour, personal development, leadership and early years provision are all strong, with warm relationships, clear routines, effective nurture support and positive views from parents and staff. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. The main area for improvement is writing. In some subjects, pupils do not consistently get enough opportunities to practise and refine their writing, so their writing skills do not develop as well as they could. Leaders recognise this and are already providing training and support to staff to strengthen writing across the curriculum. The report notes that this graded inspection did not result in an overall effectiveness grade, in line with Ofsted’s arrangements from September 2024.

Strengths

• Caring and knowledgeable staff know pupils well and make decisions based on pupils’ needs.
• Pupils are happy and safe and enjoy learning to read, write and find out about the wider world.
• Clear routines and adult modelling help pupils learn kindness, courtesy and respect.
• The curriculum sets out logical knowledge, vocabulary and skills across subjects.
• Teachers use expert subject knowledge and training to help pupils understand new concepts.
• Reading is taught systematically from the start, with extra support for pupils who fall behind.
• Early years staff are experts in child development and help children become more independent.
• The school works closely with the trust SEND coordinator and includes parents in decisions about support.
• Nurture provision has a positive impact on pupils’ social and emotional development.
• Leaders have an accurate view of strengths and areas for improvement and support staff well-being and development.
• Trustees hold leaders to account for the quality of education.
• Parents are positive about their children’s education and experiences.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils do not always have enough opportunities to practise and refine their writing in some subjects.
• Pupils’ writing skills do not develop as well as they could because writing practice is inconsistent across subjects.
• The school should continue to provide training and support to staff to improve pupils’ opportunities to develop and refine writing across the curriculum.

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 Highgate Infant School attended 93.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 22.9% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Highgate 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 Highgate Infant School had 13.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 19.0% of pupils at Highgate Infant School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 15.9% 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 Highgate Infant School received £10,455 and spent £10,524 for each of its 62 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £111,000 (£1,783 per pupil).

Across all 12 schools of Unity Education Trust, income was £9,934 and spending £10,116 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 King'S Lynn · Norfolk local authority: places and applications

Highgate Infant School is part of Unity Education Trust, which runs 12 schools. The nearest others:

• Greyfriars Academy Kings Lynn
• King's Oak Academy King'S Lynn
• Churchill Park Complex Needs School King'S Lynn
• St Germans Academy King'S Lynn
• Magdalen Academy King'S Lynn
• Wimbotsham and Stow Academy King'S Lynn
• Beeston Primary School King'S Lynn
• Northgate High School Dereham
• Grove House Infant and Nursery School Dereham
• King's Park Infant School, Dereham Dereham

What is Highgate Infant School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Highgate Infant School is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Highgate Infant School last inspected by Ofsted?

Highgate Infant School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Highgate Infant School have?

Highgate Infant School has 63 pupils on roll.

What age range does Highgate Infant School cover?

Highgate Infant School for pupils aged 4 to 7.

Where is Highgate Infant School?

Highgate Infant School is at Gaywood Road, King's Lynn, Norfolk, PE30 2PS.