Hilltop Infant School

Inspection of Hilltop Infant School Hill Avenue, Wickford, Essex SS11 8LT

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Inspection dates: 12 and 13 November 2024

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The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Early years provision Good

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Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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The head of school is Janine Travi. The school is part of the HEARTS multi-academy trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Don Wry, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Vaughan Collier. There is also an executive headteacher, Louise Johnson, who has responsibility for the school.

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Ofsted has not previously inspected Hilltop Infant School under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. However, Ofsted previously judged the predecessor school, also called Hilltop Infant School, as outstanding for overall effectiveness before it converted to academy status. Since September 2024, schools have not been awarded an overall effectiveness grade. 12 and 13 November 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Hilltop Infant School is a welcoming and nurturing learning community where pupils thrive. Parents and carers are effusive in their praise for the school. Relationships between staff, pupils and their families are warm and respectful. This helps to ensure pupils feel safe and are kept safe. Pupils behave exceptionally well in lessons. In the playground, they engage positively with each other and the activities available. Older pupils readily show care and kindness towards their younger peers, for example in helping them use the play equipment.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils follow an ambitious and interesting curriculum. They are eager to learn, produce work of high quality and achieve well. Pupils enjoy the wide range of visits and visitors. For example, outings to the theatre, places of worship and dinosaur workshops help bring the curriculum to life.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The ‘HEARTS Promise’ is designed to engage all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), in exciting opportunities. A broad range of additional activities, such as dance and fitness, baking, yoga, gardening, gymnastics and sports, develop pupils’ talents and interests. Planned experiences often link to the school’s contribution to the local community. For example, the choir performs at the town’s Christmas lights event and sings in a local care home.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school has developed a rich and ambitious curriculum. In each subject, and area of learning, the knowledge that pupils need is clearly identified and logically sequenced. Pupils revisit, embed and apply their understanding. For example, in mathematics, children in early years practise counting in different steps. Older pupils build on this when identifying and extending more complex number patterns. Similarly, in design technology, pupils practise measuring, cutting and sticking. They apply these skills to tackle more- demanding projects, such as building a model car with a working chassis, axle and wheels. Over time, pupils develop a deep knowledge and understanding in different subjects and are exceptionally well prepared for the next stage of their education.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Pupils’ early language development is well considered. Tasks and activities in the early years typically allow children to develop their vocabulary and confidence with spoken language. However, there are occasions where this less consistent. Leaders are aware of this and have appropriate plans in place to further develop this aspect of early years.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Reading is given a high priority. This begins in the Nursery, where children listen to and join in with familiar stories, rhymes and songs. This prepares children well to learn phonics from the start of the Reception Year. Staff are well trained to deliver the phonics programme with precision. The books pupils read are closely matched to the sounds they are learning. Pupils who struggle are well supported to catch up. As a result, pupils learn to read with accuracy and fluency. Pupils enjoy reading and being read to. Events such as the grandparents’ reading workshop promote the importance of families enjoying books together. 12 and 13 November 2024

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Pupils with SEND are swiftly identified. Helpful guidance, including from speech and language therapists and educational psychologists, enables staff to support pupils to access the same curriculum as their peers. Some pupils follow a bespoke curriculum that is well matched to their more-complex needs. Pupils with SEND achieve well from their different starting points.

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Behaviour is exceptional because expectations are well understood and consistently applied. In the Nursery, two- and three-year old children settle quickly. The curriculum is designed to help them understand what it means to behave well, including taking turns and working with others. This continues throughout the school. As a result, learning is not disrupted. Robust systems and strong relationships with parents mean that pupils attend well. The school has had particular success in reducing persistent absence.

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The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development is exemplary. The curriculum is well designed to help pupils understand the importance of maintaining good physical and mental health and staying safe online. Pupils are highly motivated to take on positions of responsibility. For example, lunchtime ‘helpers and heroes’ assist staff to serve food and design games to play outside. The ‘eco-warrior spokespeople’ represent their peers, who are all seen as ‘eco-warriors’. This group is proud to share its work to redesign parts of the school grounds into a vegetable garden to provide food for the community. Pupils elect their peers to many of these roles, helping to build an understanding of the importance of democracy.

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Leaders and those responsible for governance are highly ambitious. Trustees have a detailed understanding of the school’s many strengths and priorities for further development. They provide a high degree of constructive challenge and hold leaders fully accountable for their work. The trust provides a wide range of support. For example, the trust-wide counsellor ensures the emotional well-being of pupils, their families and staff is a high priority. This has been achieved through mental health first-aid training and the development of mindfulness through the curriculum.

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Staff, including those at the start of their careers, feel well supported to develop professionally. They are rightly proud to work here and recognise that their workload and well-being are well considered.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 On occasion, some of the experiences provided in early years do not fully reflect the ambition of the intended curriculum. At times, this leads to variation in the quality of learning for some children. The school should take further action to ensure that tasks 12 and 13 November 2024

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and activities provided are purposeful and consistently support the delivery of a high- quality education across the early years. 12 and 13 November 2024

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 12 and 13 November 2024

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School details

Headteacher Janine Travi (Head of School) Louise Johnson (Executive Headteacher) Website www.hearts-hilltopinf.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school joined the HEARTS multi-academy trust in 2017.  The head of school took up her role in January 2024.  The school has provision for two-year-olds within the Nursery class.  The school does not currently make use of alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management) and for any relevant provision judgement (early years provision). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024 will not be given an overall effectiveness grade. 12 and 13 November 2024

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 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics and design technology. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with pupils about their learning and looked at samples of their work. Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects.  Discussions were held with the head of school, other leaders and a range of staff. Inspectors also met with the chair and vice-chair of the board of trustees, local advisory board and the CEO of the HEARTS multi-academy trust.

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 Inspectors scrutinised a range of documents, including leaders’ evaluation of the school and priorities for improvement.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The views of pupils, parents and staff were gathered through discussions as well as considering their responses to Ofsted’s online surveys.

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Inspection team

Nick Turvey, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Ceri Jones Ofsted Inspector 12 and 13 November 2024

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achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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