Hilltop Junior School
Hill Avenue, Wickford, SS11 8LT
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 7 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- HEARTS ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Miss Annie Bristow
- Sponsor
- HEARTS Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Rayleigh and Wickford
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 360
- Pupils on roll
- 352
- URN
- 145421
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01268734649
About this school
Hilltop Junior School is a primary academy in Wickford. It teaches children aged 7 to 11 and has 352 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Hilltop Junior School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person 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
- 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 | 82 | 88 | 90 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 59% | 77% | 67% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 15% | 18% | 6% |
| Expected standard in reading | 91% | 86% | 77% |
| Expected standard in maths | 66% | 92% | 79% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 82% | 78% | 69% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 110.0 | 107.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | 107.0 | 106.0 |
| Reading progress | +3.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +2.70 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -2.20 | - | - |
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 Hilltop Junior 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 | Essex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 59% | 58.9% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 77% | 59.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 67% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 349 |
| 2023/24 | 372 |
| 2024/25 | 360 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Hilltop Junior School compares
Hilltop Junior School ranked 183rd of 388 primary schools in Essex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 64% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 67% | 4.9% | 15.3% | 352 | — |
| Hilltop Infant School | — | 5% | 8.6% | 237 | 0.1 miles |
| The Wickford Church of England School | — | 3.9% | 10.5% | 135 | 0.5 miles |
| Runwell Community Primary School | 53% | 5.3% | 20.9% | 362 | 0.9 miles |
| North Crescent Primary School | 68% | 8.1% | 36.5% | 216 | 1.0 miles |
| Abacus Primary School | 66% | 5.2% | 6.8% | 413 | 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)
- 15.28%
- English as an additional language
- 3.9%
- Overall absence
- 4.86%
- Persistent absence
- 9.84%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Hilltop Infant School0.1 miles
Primary · Wickford
-
The Wickford Church of England School0.5 miles
Primary · Wickford
-
Runwell Community Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Wickford
-
North Crescent Primary School1.0 miles
Primary · Wickford
-
Abacus Primary School1.1 miles
Primary · Wickford
Other schools in Wickford
Hilltop Junior School ranks 2nd of the 7 ranked primary schools in Wickford.
- Abacus Primary School Primary
- Grange Primary School Primary
- Hilltop Infant School Primary
- North Crescent Primary School Primary
- Oakfield Primary School Primary
- Runwell Community Primary School Primary
- St Luke's Park Primary School Primary
- The Wickford Church of England School Primary
- Wickford Primary School Primary
- Beauchamps High School Secondary
- The Bromfords School Secondary
- Castledon School Academies
Common questions
- What ages does Hilltop Junior School teach?
- Hilltop Junior School teaches children aged 7 to 11. It is a primary school in Wickford.
- Who is the headteacher of Hilltop Junior School?
- The headteacher of Hilltop Junior School is Miss Annie Bristow, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Hilltop Junior School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Hilltop Junior 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 Hilltop Junior School?
- Hilltop Junior School has 352 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 11.
- Is Hilltop Junior School full?
- Hilltop Junior School has capacity for 360 pupils and 352 on roll (98%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Hilltop Junior School a faith school?
- No. Hilltop Junior School has no designated religious character.
- Does Hilltop Junior School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Hilltop Junior School as having no nursery classes.
- Is Hilltop Junior School part of an academy trust?
- Hilltop Junior School is part of HEARTS ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Hilltop Junior School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 59% in 2022/23 and 67% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Hilltop Junior School compare with other schools in Essex?
- Hilltop Junior School ranked 183rd of 388 primary schools in Essex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 64% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Hilltop Junior School's absence rate?
- Hilltop Junior School's overall absence rate is 4.9% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Hilltop Junior School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Hilltop Junior 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 10 July 2026.