Hitchin Highbury

Summary

Hitchin Highbury (E02004921) is part of Hertfordshire local authority (view on map). Hitchin Highbury has an approximate population of 8,000 people, of which 20% are children 15 years old and under. It is classified as "urban: nearer to a major town or city".

Hitchin Highbury neighbours Hitchin Bearton, Hitchin Walsworth, Hitchin Town & West, Ickleford, Great Offley & Whitwell, and Great Ashby & Wymondley.

Headlines

  • 11% of children are living in low-income families, ranking it among the 10% least deprived regarding income deprivation among children in England – see more.
  • 5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, placing it in the bottom 10% of all areas in England – see more.
  • 3% of pupils have an EHC plan, placing it in the bottom 10% of all areas in England – see more.
Guidance and data sources

Local area pages are based on the middle-layer super output areas (MSOAs) distributed across the country. MSOAs comprise between 2,000 and 6,000 households and have a resident population of, generally, between 5,000 and 15,000 people. MSOAs fit within local authorities. For each area, descriptive statistics are compared with local authority and national averages. For more information about MSOAs, please visit the Office for National Statistics website.

The data displayed is sourced from:

Deprivation

Hitchin Highbury is the 17th least deprived area in Hertfordshire (out of 154) with 11% of children living in low-income families, compared to 26% across Hertfordshire and 38% nationally.

11% of children are living in low-income families, ranking it among the 10% least deprived regarding income deprivation among children in England.

Data source

State-funded pupil characteristics

Information acquired from the school census.

Free school meals

In Hitchin Highbury, 5% of state-funded pupils are eligible for free school meals, compared to 17% in Hertfordshire and 27% nationally.

5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, placing it in the bottom 10% of all areas in England.

Contents

Percentage of pupils eligible for free school meals

Table showing the percentage of pupils eligible for free school meals

% in Hitchin Highbury % in Hertfordshire % in England
Eligible for free school meals 5% 17% 27%
Not eligible for free school meals 95% 83% 73%

Data source

Special educational needs

In Hitchin Highbury, 14% of pupils in state-funded settings have special educational needs (SEN), compared to 18% in Hertfordshire, and 19% nationally.

This includes the number of pupils with an education, health and care (EHC) plan and the number of pupils with SEN support.

3% of pupils have an EHC plan, placing it in the bottom 10% of all areas in England.

Contents

Percentage of pupils with special educational needs in schools

Table showing the percentage of pupils with special educational needs in schools

% in Hitchin Highbury % in Hertfordshire % in England
No special educational needs 86% 82% 81%
Receiving special educational needs support 11% 14% 14%
With an education, health, and care plan (EHCP) 3% 4% 5%

Data source

Ethnicity

In Hitchin Highbury, 25% of pupils are from a minority ethnic background, compared to 30% in Hertfordshire, and 33% nationally.

Percentages may not sum to 100%, due to small values being suppressed.

Contents

Percentage of pupils by major ethnic groups

Table

% in Hitchin Highbury % in Hertfordshire % in England
White 73% 71% 67%
Asian 13% 12% 14%
Black 1% 6% 7%
Mixed 10% 9% 7%
Other 1% 2% 3%
Not known 2% 1% 2%

Data source

English as an additional language

The percentage of pupils in Hitchin Highbury with English as an additional language is 12%, compared with 19% in Hertfordshire, and 22% nationally.

Numbers may not sum to 100%, due to a small number of pupils with an unclassified language.

Contents

Percentage of pupils with English as an additional language

Table

% in Hitchin Highbury % in Hertfordshire % in England
Known or believed to be other than English 12% 19% 22%
Known or believed to be English 87% 81% 78%

Data source

Provider information

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Registered childcare providers

Hitchin Highbury has 17 registered childcare providers.

Type Number in Hitchin Highbury
All childcare providers 17
Childminders 7
Pre-school/day nursery/out-of-school care 10

There have been no inspections of childcare providers in Hitchin Highbury since the introduction of the renewed education inspection framework in November 2025.

Data source

State-funded schools

Hitchin Highbury has 5 state-funded schools.

Type Number in Hitchin Highbury
All state-funded schools 5
Nursery schools 0
Primary and all-through schools 4
Secondary and all-through schools 1
Special schools 0
Registered alternative provision 0

There have been no inspections of schools in Hitchin Highbury since the introduction of the renewed education inspection framework in November 2025.

Data sources: