When should a child begin to train, and why the old fear was wrong
Most parents think lifting weights is dangerous for children. Twenty years of paediatric consensus disagree, and the reason has more to do with the nervous system than with muscle.
London · Waltham Forest
Hillyfield Primary Academy
Academy converter · ages 3–11 · 1194 pupils
Part of HILLYFIELD PRIMARY ACADEMY
18% free school meals 29% English as an additional language (Year 6) 6% SEN support (Year 6)
Year 6 results
Reading, writing and maths
Share of Year 6 pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, 2024/25.
| Year | School | Waltham Forest | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 79% | 70% | 60% |
| 2023/24 | 75% | 73% | 61% |
| 2024/25 | 75% | 74% | 63% |
| 3-year average | 76% |
170 pupils took the tests in 2025.
Average scaled scores in 2025: reading 107, maths 108 (100 is the expected standard). Higher standard in reading, writing and maths: 16%.
There are no results for 2019/20 or 2020/21, when the tests were cancelled. What do SATs scores mean?
Inspection
What Ofsted found
Most recent inspection, published 02/07/2024: School remains Good (Improving) - S5 Next.
This was a shorter check that confirms an earlier grade rather than giving a new one. Ofsted moved to report cards in November 2025.
The local area
Children in Waltham Forest
| Measure | Waltham Forest | England |
|---|---|---|
| Good level of development at the end of Reception 2024/25 higher | 75.0% | 68.3% |
| Phonics check met in Year 1 2024/25 higher | 83.6% | 79.8% |
| Year 6 children living with obesity 2024/25 similar | 22.3% | 22.2% |
| MMR two doses by age 5 2024/25 lower | 72.3% | 83.7% |
| Primary pupils persistently absent 2024/25 similar | 13.4% | 13.0% |
| Children in relative low-income families (under 16) 2024/25 lower | 18.2% | 19.8% |
“Higher” or “lower” means the difference from England is bigger than the margin of error; “similar” means it isn’t. These are figures for all children in the council area, not for any one school or child.