Highwood Primary School
Mead Way, Bushey, WD23 2AW
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mrs Bindu Rai
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Watford
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 445
- URN
- 117089
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01923256210
About this school
Highwood Primary School is a community primary school in Bushey. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 445 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Highwood Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 51 | 58 | 59 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 57% | 45% | 41% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 8% | 2% | 5% |
| Expected standard in reading | 65% | 72% | 66% |
| Expected standard in maths | 67% | 72% | 61% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 63% | 74% | 76% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 105.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 105.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.30 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.30 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Highwood Primary School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Hertfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 57% | 59.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 45% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 41% | 61% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 434 |
| 2023/24 | 441 |
| 2024/25 | 439 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Highwood Primary School compares
Highwood Primary School ranked 302nd of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 12% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 52% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 41% | 5.4% | 19.2% | 445 | — |
| Knutsford Primary Academy | 72% | 5% | 8.7% | 438 | 0.6 miles |
| Central Primary School | 69% | 5.4% | 22.9% | 399 | 1.0 miles |
| Parkgate Junior School | 58% | 4% | 14.3% | 236 | 1.0 miles |
| Watford St John's Church of England Primary School | 67% | 4.1% | 12.2% | 401 | 1.0 miles |
| Parkgate Infants' and Nursery School | — | 5.2% | 5.7% | 202 | 1.1 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 19.16%
- English as an additional language
- 29.4%
- Overall absence
- 5.36%
- Persistent absence
- 12.5%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Knutsford Primary Academy0.6 miles
Primary · Watford
-
Central Primary School1.0 miles
Primary · Watford
-
Parkgate Junior School1.0 miles
Primary · Watford
-
Watford St John's Church of England Primary School1.0 miles
Primary · Watford
-
Parkgate Infants' and Nursery School1.1 miles
Primary · Watford
Other schools in Bushey
Highwood Primary School ranks 8th of the 8 ranked primary schools in Bushey.
- Ashfield Junior School Primary
- Bournehall Primary School Primary
- Bushey and Oxhey Infant School Primary
- Bushey Heath Primary School Primary
- Bushey Manor Junior School Primary
- Hartsbourne Primary School Primary
- Little Reddings Primary School Primary
- Merry Hill Infant School and Nursery Primary
- Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Bushey Meads School Secondary
- Queens' School Secondary
- The Grange Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Highwood Primary School teach?
- Highwood Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Bushey.
- Who is the headteacher of Highwood Primary School?
- The headteacher of Highwood Primary School is Mrs Bindu Rai, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Highwood Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Highwood Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Highwood Primary School?
- Highwood Primary School has 445 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Highwood Primary School full?
- Highwood Primary School has capacity for 420 pupils and 445 on roll (106%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Highwood Primary School a faith school?
- No. Highwood Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Highwood Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Highwood Primary School as having nursery classes.
- How have Highwood Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 57% in 2022/23 and 41% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Highwood Primary School compare with other schools in Hertfordshire?
- Highwood Primary School ranked 302nd of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 12% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 52% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Highwood Primary School's absence rate?
- Highwood Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Highwood Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Highwood Primary School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 30 June 2026.