Hempstead Junior School
Birch Grove, Hempstead, Gillingham, ME7 3HJOpen in maps (opens in a new tab)
Hempstead Junior School is a primary school in Gillingham for ages 7 to 11. It is one of the 110 schools in Medway. It ranks 7th of 18 primary schools in Gillingham. Its latest Ofsted rating is Good, from an inspection in October 2013.
Ofsted inspection
Inspected 10 October 2013, report published 8 November 2013
- Overall effectiveness
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
What Ofsted said
From the inspection on 6 March 2024
Pupils at Hempstead Junior School are full of enthusiasm. They are proud of their school and work hard to live by the 'Hempstead Five' golden expectations. The school helps all pupils to develop a strong understanding of their rights, but also the rights of others. This can be seen in action in the school's open-plan classrooms, where pupils ensure that they learn in a way that does not disrupt the learning of others. Most pupils consistently meet the school's high academic expectations of them. They participate actively in their lessons. They understand that success requires perseverance even when learning is challenging. The school recognises that some pupils have been harder to engage with, particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic. The curriculum has been adapted carefully to take account of the needs of these pupils and to re-engage them. The school offers a broad range of enriching activities to bring learning to life. For instance, pupils showcase their artwork in a local exhibition for parents and carers. Pupils eagerly contribute to the school community in various ways. For example, peer mediators help to resolve friendship issues during breaktimes.
What the school should improve
- Assessment information is not always used carefully enough to identify what the lowest attaining readers need to work on. Additionally, at times the books these pupils use to apply their phonics knowledge do not match fully the sounds they have learned. As a result, they are not making as much progress as they could. The school should ensure that it supports all weaker readers fully effectively to become fluent and accurate readers.
- In a small number of subjects, curriculum thinking is at an earlier stage and there is a lack of specificity about some curriculum content. As a result, pupils do not always deepen their knowledge over time as much as they could. The school should continue its work to refine the curriculum in these less well-developed subjects so that pupils develop a cohesive body of knowledge.
Exam results
SATs results (key stage 2), 2024/25
94 pupils took the tests
Pupil numbers and mix
371 pupils on roll, with places for 360
Schools near Hempstead Junior School
| School | Distance | Ofsted | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hempstead Infant School | 0.1 miles | Ofsted: Good | Not published |
| Fairview Community Primary School | 0.7 miles | Ofsted: Good | 73% met the expected standard |
| Deanwood Primary School | 0.9 miles | Ofsted: Good | 28% met the expected standard |
| St Augustine of Canterbury Catholic Primary School | 1 mile | Ofsted: Good | 70% met the expected standard |
| Bredhurst Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School | 1 mile | Ofsted: Good | 90% met the expected standard |
School details
- School type
- Community school
- Sector
- Local authority maintained
- Age range
- 7 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Nursery classes
- No
- Headteacher
- Mr Paul Cross
- Phone
- 01634336963
- Address
- Birch Grove, Hempstead, Gillingham, ME7 3HJ
- Local authority
- Medway
- URN
- 118423
School details from Get Information about Schools, 17 September 2026. Ofsted outcomes published to 31 August 2026. Exam results for 2024/25 from the Department for Education. Pupil mix from the school census, 2025/26.