"> I moved to Poole recently in 2014, and was surfing the net for schools. I found Hillbourne. Lots of people commented it wasnt a good school, but that was based on opinion over 20 years ago. I visited the school 4 times, twice on the open day and then twice with the wonderful Headteacher, Mr. Taylor, to see the other years. The school is open and very peaceful. Mr. Taylor was so helpful, informative and very open about the schools previous reputation. He answered all of my concerns, which was very reassuring. As we walked through both Early Years and Junior years buildings, all of the children said hello to Mr. Taylor. The school is friendly and the students are very well behaved. I visited a special advanced maths class where the students said they liked it because they were getting bored in the regular class because it was easy. I thought that was outstanding. My son's reception teacher is wonderful. She helps my son push a little further and expands his knowledge of reading and writing to the level I wanted. The school is really lovely. I feel complete satisfaction that I chose Hillbourne. Don't rely on opinions of Hillbourne that are based on 20 years ago. Go see it, meet the teachers, go as many times as you like, you will be very reassured and satisfied. (One last point: there's plenty of parking around the school, so no stress when dropping off or picking up!)