Kents Hill Infant Academy, Benfleet
Kents Hill Infant Academy is a primary school for pupils aged 2 to 7 in Benfleet, part of South Essex Academy Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in March 2024. It was 76% full in 2025.
- Ofsted
- Good (2024)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Essex (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Kents Hill Infant Academy in detail
Getting a place at Kents Hill Infant Academy
For September 2026 entry, 58 families put Kents Hill Infant Academy as their first choice and 138 named it as one of their preferences, for 59 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 2 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Admissions history and your chances at Kents Hill Infant Academy
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Kents Hill Infant Academy are Kents Hill Junior School (under 0.1 miles, Good, 83% reading, 90% maths); Holy Family Catholic Primary School (0.1 miles, Good, 60% reading, 67% maths); Jotmans Hall Primary School (0.5 miles, Requires improvement, 84% reading, 76% maths); and South Benfleet Primary School (0.6 miles, Good, 83% reading, 86% maths).
Kents Hill Junior SchoolHoly Family Catholic Primary SchoolJotmans Hall Primary SchoolSouth Benfleet Primary School
The trust
Kents Hill Infant Academy is one of 5 schools run by South Essex Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 57% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
Who goes there
10% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 2.9% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (88%) and Mixed (6%).
In 2026, 18 pupils (7.5%) received SEN support and 10 (4.2%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is autism.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Benfleet Rail Station, about 1.2 miles away in a straight line.
4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Bowers Road (s-bound), 180 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Kents Hill Infant Academy stands in is among the 20% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Kents Hill Infant Academy issued 4 suspensions, 1.6 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Kents Hill Infant Academy are Harris Academy Benfleet (0.4 miles), The King John School (1.5 miles) and The Deanes (1.7 miles).
Sources: DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 3 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted Insights
Ofsted rated this school Good at its March 2024 inspection.
Rated Good for
Quality of education, Behaviour & attitudes, Personal development, Leadership & management, Early years.
At a Glance
10.0%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Class Sizes
26.6
Avg class size
28.8
Infant (KS1)
9
Total classes
2 classes with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Kents Hill Infant Academy
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Kents Hill Infant Academy from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Kents Hill Infant Academy is in Essex; for families living there:
- Essex's school travel policy: Education Transport Policy
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 12
- Fatal
- 1
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 4
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 12 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 2 serious and 9 slight.
4 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 4 on foot.
2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Essex is 9 (the median across 614 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Kents Hill Infant Academy
Will you get a place at Kents Hill Infant Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Kents Hill Infant Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Kents Hill Infant Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Kents Hill Infant Academy.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Essex, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Kents Hill Infant Academy for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Essex got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
76%
Available places
206 pupils
270 places
64 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Benfleet
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Benfleet
Across Essex council
Places available
17,932
Applications
15,737
Got 1st preference
90.3%
Got preferred school
98.2%
All primary applications across Essex council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(3)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
18
SEN Support
10
EHC Plans
11.7%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
239
Total Pupils
129
Boys
110
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
11
Teachers
21.7:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£53,422
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,147
Per pupil
£1207k
Total funding
£32k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
4.6%
Overall absence
8.5%
Persistent absence
153
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Kents Hill Infant Academy
Questions parents ask about Kents Hill Infant Academy
What is Kents Hill Infant Academy's Ofsted rating?
Kents Hill Infant Academy was rated Good at its most recent Ofsted inspection in March 2024. At its previous graded inspection in 2007 it was rated Outstanding.
What is the catchment area for Kents Hill Infant Academy?
No fixed boundary. When Kents Hill Infant Academy is oversubscribed, Essex allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Kents Hill Infant Academy?
Kents Hill Infant Academy was not full in 2025: it ran at 76% of its 270 places.
How big are the classes at Kents Hill Infant Academy?
Classes at Kents Hill Infant Academy average 26.6 pupils (2025/26). 2 classes have more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Kents Hill Infant Academy?
Kents Hill Infant Academy has around 239 pupils on roll. 10% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Kents Hill Infant Academy?
4.6% of sessions were missed at Kents Hill Infant Academy in 2024/25. 8.5% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Kents Hill Infant Academy?
Apply through Essex's coordinated admissions process, naming Kents Hill Infant Academy on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Kents Hill Infant Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 12 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 2 serious and 9 slight. 4 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 4 on foot. 2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Essex is 9 (the median across 614 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Kents Hill Infant Academy?
Kents Hill Infant Academy is at Kents Hill Road, Benfleet, Essex, SS7 5PS.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)