Hollywood Primary School

About Hollywood Primary School

Hollywood Primary School in Birmingham was rated Good by Ofsted in its most recent inspection in 2019, a notable improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating. The inspection report highlighted Good leadership and management, Good early years provision, and an overall Good effectiveness. However, the school’s most telling academic metric is its Key Stage 2 combined reading, writing and maths expected standard score: just 49% of pupils met this benchmark in the 2023/24 academic year. That places the school well below the Birmingham local authority average of 63% for primary schools, and ranks it 220th out of 254 primary schools in the authority — putting it in the bottom 50% nationally. Only 3% of pupils achieved the higher standard in reading, writing and maths combined, though individual subject scores were stronger: 70% reached the expected standard in reading and 75% in maths, with average scaled scores of 106 and 105 respectively.

The gap between reading and maths outcomes and writing is striking: just 56% of pupils reached the expected standard in writing, and only 3% achieved the higher standard. This suggests writing is a particular challenge for the school, and may be a focus for improvement. The school’s Progress 8 scores for reading, writing and maths are not available in the data, so it’s hard to say how much value the school adds relative to pupils’ starting points. With 37% of pupils eligible for free school meals — well above the national average — the school serves a relatively disadvantaged intake, which may partly explain the below-average attainment figures. For parents weighing up options, it’s worth noting that the nearest Outstanding-rated primary, Billesley Primary School, is 2.6 km away, and top-performing local peers like Little Sutton Primary School achieve a ranking score of 95 compared to Hollywood’s 49.

Hollywood Primary is a mixed, non-religious state school for children aged 4 to 11, with a capacity of 433 and currently 416 pupils on roll. It was oversubscribed for 2025/26 entry, receiving 109 applications for 54 places, with 48 first-preference offers made — an oversubscription ratio of 2.02. The school offers a broad range of facilities including a library, sports hall, ICT suite, music rooms, sensory room, and a chapel. Sports provision covers football, cricket, tennis, rounders and swimming, while clubs include drama, coding, eco club, science club and choir. SEND support is extensive, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, speech and language needs, hearing and visual impairments, autistic spectrum disorder, and social, emotional and mental health needs, plus a resourced provision. This school may suit families who value strong SEND support and a wide extracurricular offer, but who are realistic about academic outcomes being below the local average.

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