Hob Hill CE/Methodist (VC) Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 23 January 2024

'Hob Hill is a small school with a big heart', is how one person described this school. Many parents, pupils and staff agree. Pupils feel that they belong to a 'family' and feel it is a place where everyone feels included. Many pupils do well in their learning. Since the last inspection, the most vulnerable pupils now make better progress. While there is still work to do, most pupils leave the school being able to read, write and tackle mathematical problems with increasing fluency. Most pupils behave well. Staff show kindness to pupils and successfully develop strong relationships based on mutual respect. Pupils understand the meaning of being 'ready for learning' and know that they have a responsibility for making their school a calm and caring place to be. Pupils know about different types of bullying and understand how to report concerns should they feel unsafe. Pupils enjoy taking part in wider opportunities. Visits to residential centres, holding leadership responsibilities, such as being a reading ambassador, and visits from authors all enrich pupils' learning. Pupils learn about the importance of accepting differences and understand that everybody is unique in their own way.

What the school should improve

• Some pupils at the end of key stage 1 are not achieving as well as they should in reading and writing. As a result, they are not prepared well enough for the demands of future learning. The school should continue to develop the English curriculum to enable most pupils to be able to read and write fluently by the end of key stage 1.
• The school does not monitor some subjects well enough. As a result, there is some uncertainty about what pupils know, remember and can do. The school should make sure that all subject leaders are supported to monitor their subject areas effectively so that any necessary improvements can be identified and addressed.
• In some subjects, the school is not developing pupils' subject-specific knowledge and skills well enough. As a result, some pupils are not building on their learning as well as they could in these subjects. The school should ensure that staff are trained to develop pupils' subject-specific knowledge and skills effectively over time.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)