HFL Primary English

17/07/2026

If you’ve finished for the summer holiday today, we wish you a wonderful, relaxing and recharging break. Thank you for all the hard work and dedication you’ve put in this year to support all of our children.

If you’re still going, like many schools in Hertfordshire, we’ll be working alongside you next week!

13/07/2026

We've seen lots of talk about the change in this year's Phonics Screening Check threshold.

Dive into this blog from our wonderful adviser, Kirsten Snook, to explore what it's really telling us and the implications.

Included is a useful, free tool which you can download to help with analysing your cohort's results, helping to be prepared for September.

Beyond the headline-grabbing drop in the threshold, what does the 2026 phonics screening check reveal about fluency, automaticity and making learning stick?

13/07/2026

Now that is some astounding progress🤩

If you want to make a difference to outcomes for your KS2 students who are reading below the Expected Standard, we can equip teachers with the knowledge and skills to do so through our Reading Fluency Project: https://hfl.mobi/RFPKS2Socials

09/07/2026

In case you missed it, here's a recent blog from the wonderful Nicky Murphy all about getting reading assessment right: https://www.hfleducation.org/blog/reading-between-lines-approaches-assessing-reading

Do get in touch if we can help your school with reading in any way!

Keep your eyes peeled for some great blogs to come - one analysing this year's PSC and another about finding the balance in Year 2 reading lessons.

If there's anything you'd love to read more about in the world of Primary English then do let us know and we might be able to add it to next year's blogs!

Reflecting on how meaningful, day-to-day assessment can deepen understanding of each child as a reader and drive truly responsive teaching.

03/07/2026

Reading fluency keeps returning to the forefront!

A recent inquiry into white working class educational outcomes again values reading fluency as an important approach for equity and raising standards.

We address this in our latest reading fluency newsletter, here:

A warm welcome to our final reading fluency newsletter of the academic year. It has certainly been a full and rewarding half term for us all, and as the year draws to a close, we are sure many of you - like us - are taking stock of the progress made, celebrating successes, and beginning to look ahea...

29/06/2026

Thoughtful assessment helps ensure that every child’s reading experience is positive, purposeful, and progressive📖

Discover some great advice from Primary English Teaching and Learning Adviser, Nicky Murphy, in a recent blog exploring approaches to assessing reading: https://hfl.mobi/AssessingReadingBlogJune26

HFL Primary English

31/05/2026

Our colleague in the assessment team wrote this fantastic blog about themes arising from the 2025 Year 6 writing moderation process. It's packed with useful advice.

Do take a read:

Whether you're in the Year 6 classroom or lead on English or assessment, these insights into KS2 moderation provide key reminders and spark useful conversations.

30/05/2026

What does the Writing Framework say about handwriting? And why does it still matter?

Find out in a recent blog written by English Teaching and Learning Adviser, Sally Robinson - https://hfl.mobi/WritingFrameworkHandwritingBlog

HFL Primary English

13/05/2026

📣 English Subject Leaders – worth a read! ✍️

I wanted to share our latest blog exploring what the Writing Framework says about handwriting – and why it still matters.
The blog explores handwriting’s place in pupils’ development. It unpicks how the framework positions transcription (including handwriting) as foundational, and highlights the ongoing link between fluency, cognitive load and composition.

Read it here:

Discover how the Writing Framework highlights that teaching handwriting and spelling from reception in a sequenced, structured way frees up pupils’ working memory for composition—building fluency, resilience, and confident writing across the curriculum.

10/03/2026

We’re thoroughly looking forward to Professor Teresa Cremin’s session at our Primary English Conference next Tuesday!

It’s going to be a fantastic day. Don’t miss out! Book your place today:

https://www.hfleducation.org/events/national-primary-english-conference-2026