Hillside Primary School

Overview

Pupils enjoy attending this “welcoming and friendly school” where they feel safe and valued. The report describes a positive environment where children are “polite and respectful,” enthusiastic about learning, and well-supported by staff who provide “precise feedback.”

Strengths

• The school provides a “broad curriculum” that effectively prepares pupils for secondary education, with early years children developing new vocabulary and routines.
• Reading is prioritised through “expertly planned phonics lessons,” with staff rapidly identifying weaker readers and providing “precise and frequent intervention.”
• Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are “well supported,” with teachers adapting lessons to ensure learning is “accessible and broken down into small steps.”
• Behaviour management is effective; pupils are taught to manage their emotions, resulting in a calm atmosphere where they “behave well in and out of lessons.”
• Personal development is thorough, helping pupils develop a “strong sense of morality” and awareness of different relationships and religious festivals.

Areas to improve

• In some subjects, curriculum implementation does not consistently allow pupils to “build connections between important knowledge and ideas,” limiting deep understanding.
• New assessment models are not yet fully embedded across all subjects, meaning gaps in knowledge are not “precisely understood” everywhere.

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective.”