Forest Hills Primary School

About Forest Hills Primary School

Forest Hills Primary School in Cannock Chase sits well below the Staffordshire local authority average for Key Stage 2 outcomes, with just 41% of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with the LA average of 65%. That 24-point gap places the school near the bottom of the county’s primary league table — 193rd out of 308 schools of the same type, and in the bottom 50% nationally. The picture is mixed when you look at individual subjects: reading fares best, with 65% of pupils meeting expectations and 29% reaching the higher standard, while maths (53% expected) and writing (41% expected) lag further behind. No pupils achieved the higher standard in writing or maths. The school’s ranking score of 41 puts it in the bottom tier locally, though it’s worth noting that the school serves a community with very high levels of disadvantage — 70.8% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, more than three times the national average.

Academically, the school is in a period of transition. Its most recent Ofsted inspection in September 2023 rated overall effectiveness as Requires Improvement, a step up from the previous Inadequate rating in 2019. The inspection found behaviour and attitudes, and personal development, to be Good — the two strongest areas — while quality of education, leadership and management, and early years provision all require improvement. The school has no published Progress 8 data, but the raw Key Stage 2 scores show a reading average of 103 and a maths average of 98, both below the national benchmark of 100. With only 88 pupils on roll against a capacity of 210, the school is significantly under-subscribed, though admissions data for 2025/26 shows it was oversubscribed for its 6 Reception places, receiving 11 applications and making 6 first-preference offers.

The school offers a nursery provision for children from age 2, and its facilities include an outdoor playground, gymnasium, sports hall, ICT suite and a chapel — unusual for a state primary. Sports on offer include dance, swimming, rounders, cross country and netball, while clubs range from chess and gardening to eco club, science club and choir. The school’s SEND provision is relatively broad, covering moderate learning difficulty, social emotional and mental health needs, speech language and communication, visual impairment and autistic spectrum disorder. For families considering Forest Hills, the key context is that the school is working through a clear improvement journey after its Inadequate rating, and while outcomes remain well below the LA average, the strong behaviour and personal development ratings suggest a school that is stable and supportive. The nearest Outstanding-rated primary is The St. Mary’s CofE Primary School, two kilometres away.

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