Pool Hayes Primary School

About Pool Hayes Primary School

Pool Hayes Primary School’s headline KS2 results sit well below the Walsall local authority average, which is a key point for parents to weigh up. In the 2023/24 academic year, just 39% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with the LA average of 61%. That gap of 22 percentage points places the school 54th out of 58 primary schools in Walsall, putting it in the bottom 10% locally and the bottom 8% nationally. The school’s ranking score of 39 (out of a possible 100) reflects this. For context, the top-performing school in the borough, St Anne’s Catholic Primary School, Streetly, scored 100. So while Pool Hayes is not the lowest-ranked school in Walsall, its headline academic performance is clearly an area of concern relative to its peers.

Digging into the individual subject data gives a more nuanced picture. In reading, 58% of pupils reached the expected standard, with an average scaled score of 102, which is slightly above the national baseline of 100. Maths was weaker: 52% at expected, with an average score of 100. Only 3% of pupils achieved the higher standard across all three subjects, and just 6% did so in reading, maths or writing individually. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, in July 2023, rated overall effectiveness as Requires Improvement, a downgrade from its previous Good rating in 2013. However, inspectors noted that early years provision, personal development, and behaviour and attitudes were all Good. Leadership and management, and the quality of education, were both judged to require improvement. The school has a nursery provision and serves a community where 28.6% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, above the national average.

On the practical side, Pool Hayes is a full-to-capacity school with 210 pupils and 210 places, and it was oversubscribed for the 2025/26 intake, receiving 34 applications for 23 places. All 23 first-preference applicants were offered a spot. The school offers a decent range of facilities including a sports hall, gymnasium, playing fields, art studios, music rooms, an ICT suite and a chapel. Sports on offer include football, cricket, swimming, athletics and dance, while clubs range from drama and choir to science, eco and gardening. The school lists seven SEND provisions, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social and emotional needs, speech and language challenges, hearing impairment and physical disability. For families looking at alternatives, the nearest Outstanding-rated primary is New Invention Learning Academy, just 0.8 km away. Pool Hayes may suit families who value its broad extracurricular offer and inclusive SEND support, but who are prepared to engage closely with the school’s ongoing improvement journey.

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