Hempstead Infant School
Hempstead Road, Hempstead, Gillingham, ME7 3QG
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 4 to 7
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mr Paul Cross
- Constituency
- Gillingham and Rainham
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 270
- Pupils on roll
- 251
- URN
- 118555
- Local authority
- Medway
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01634336963
About this school
Hempstead Infant School is a community primary school in Gillingham. It teaches children aged 4 to 7 and has 251 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 13 March 2024, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Trends over time
How Hempstead Infant 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 | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 270 |
| 2023/24 | 262 |
| 2024/25 | 254 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Hempstead Infant School compares
Its absence rate was lower than 59% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | — | 5.1% | 8.3% | 251 | — |
| Hempstead Junior School | 72% | 5.5% | 9.9% | 371 | 0.1 miles |
| Fairview Community Primary School | 73% | 3.9% | 6.4% | 670 | 0.7 miles |
| Deanwood Primary School | 28% | 5.7% | 29.5% | 238 | 1.0 miles |
| St Augustine of Canterbury Catholic Primary School | 70% | 4.9% | 15.7% | 189 | 1.2 miles |
| Parkwood Primary School | — | 4.6% | 19.2% | 476 | 1.2 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)
- 8.27%
- English as an additional language
- 8.7%
- Overall absence
- 5.05%
- Persistent absence
- 9.19%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Hempstead Junior School0.1 miles
Primary · Gillingham
-
Fairview Community Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Gillingham
-
Deanwood Primary School1.0 miles
Primary · Gillingham
-
St Augustine of Canterbury Catholic Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Gillingham
-
Parkwood Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Gillingham
Other schools in Gillingham
- Barnsole Primary School Primary
- Brompton-Westbrook Primary School Primary
- Burnt Oak Primary School Primary
- Byron Primary School Primary
- Deanwood Primary School Primary
- Fairview Community Primary School Primary
- Featherby Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Featherby Junior School Primary
- Hempstead Junior School Primary
- Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy Primary
- Oasis Academy Skinner Street Primary
- Parkwood Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Hempstead Infant School teach?
- Hempstead Infant School teaches children aged 4 to 7. It is a primary school in Gillingham.
- Who is the headteacher of Hempstead Infant School?
- The headteacher of Hempstead Infant School is Mr Paul Cross, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Hempstead Infant School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Hempstead Infant 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 big is Hempstead Infant School?
- Hempstead Infant School has 251 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 7.
- Is Hempstead Infant School full?
- Hempstead Infant School has capacity for 270 pupils and 251 on roll (93%), so it has space against 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 Hempstead Infant School a faith school?
- No. Hempstead Infant School has no designated religious character.
- Does Hempstead Infant School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Hempstead Infant School as having no nursery classes.
- What is Hempstead Infant School's absence rate?
- Hempstead Infant School's overall absence rate is 5.1% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- Does Hempstead Infant School publish exam results?
- OfferDay shows exam results for a school only where the Department for Education has published them, and none are shown for Hempstead Infant School. That is usual for infant, nursery, special and independent schools, and for schools without recent published results.
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.