Ofsted: Good trending_up Places Available emoji_events #29 in Bradford public Top 43% UK

Appleton Academy

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMs Helen Jones

corporate_fareEXCEED ACADEMIES TRUST

location_onBradford, BD12 8AL

language Visit Website phone 1274600550

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2021

groups

Students

1,237

trending_up

Attainment 8

35.1

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GCSE Rank

#28 in Bradford

#3,015 of 3,216 nationally

summarize

Appleton Academy is a Academy sponsor led secondary school in Bradford, serving ages 3-16. Rated Good by Ofsted.

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School Summary

Appleton Academy is an academy sponsor led in Bradford, admitting pupils aged 3-16. It is part of EXCEED ACADEMIES TRUST. The school has approximately 1,254 pupils on roll, of whom 52% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 35.1, placing the school #28 in Bradford and #3,015 of 3,216 nationally. 27.00% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 8.5% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

In 2025, 63% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 12% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #67 of 35 primaries in Bradford and #6,017 of 3,216 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2021. The school's current overall rating is Good. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Good, behaviour and attitudes Good, personal development Good, and leadership and management Good.

In the most recent admissions cycle, applications were at 1.0× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 14.5:1. There is 1 teaching vacancy.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 15.5 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

analytics

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2025

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

35.1

Grade 5+ E&M

27.00%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)8.5%

Entering EBacc15.30%

EBacc APS2.84

2024

Progress 8 Score

-0.87

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

34.1

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc22.00%

EBacc APS2.64

2023

Progress 8 Score

-0.56

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

38.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc27%

EBacc APS3.02

2022

Progress 8 Score

-0.57

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc21%

EBacc APS3.1

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc35%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

-0.57

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

39.5

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc30%

EBacc APS3.29

2018

Progress 8 Score

-0.71

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc48%

EBacc APS3.04

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Student Destinations (After Secondary)

This module shows what students did after finishing Key Stage 4 (GCSEs). It reflects how well the school prepares pupils for the real world.

2025

Stayed in Education / Employment

86%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)82%

Apprenticeships3%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)8%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

87%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)71%

Apprenticeships9%

Employment7%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)10%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

91%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)79%

Apprenticeships3%

Employment9%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)9%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

82%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)74%

Apprenticeships4%

Employment4%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)16%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

90%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)77%

Apprenticeships9%

Employment4%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)8%

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

63%

LA 60%

Reading81% LA 73%

Writing75% LA 70%

Maths75% LA 71%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

106

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

55%

LA 58%England 61%

Reading67% LA 71% · Eng 74%

Writing78% LA 70% · Eng 72%

Maths78% LA 72% · Eng 73%

Read SS

104

Maths SS

106

GPS SS

107

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

59%

LA 57%England 60%

Reading69% LA 69% · Eng 73%

Writing69% LA 71% · Eng 71%

Maths81% LA 71% · Eng 73%

Read SS

104

Maths SS

104

GPS SS

104

Progress (0 = national avg)

-1.8

Read

LA -0.6

-3.5 to -0.2

-0.2

Write

LA 0.1

-1.8 to 1.3

-0.2

Maths

LA -0.1

-1.7 to 1.3

2019

R/W/M Expected Standard

67%

LA 62%England 65%

Reading75% LA 70% · Eng 73%

Writing83% LA 76% · Eng 78%

Maths81% LA 77% · Eng 79%

Read SS

103

Maths SS

105

GPS SS

104

Progress (0 = national avg)

-1.4

Read

LA 0.4

-2.9 to 0.2

0.8

Write

LA 0.6

-0.6 to 2.2

-0.6

Maths

LA 0.8

-2.0 to 0.7

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

71%

LA 60%

Reading83% LA 71%

Writing76% LA 75%

Maths83% LA 73%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

107

GPS SS

107

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.5

Read

LA 0.2

-1.1 to 2.1

-1

Write

LA 0.7

-2.5 to 0.5

1.6

Maths

LA 0.8

0.2 to 3

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

03 November 2021

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2021-11-03

Academy First Section 5 EIF

Good

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2016-03-02

Requires Improvement S5 Reinspection Visit 1 EIF

Requires improvement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2013-12-03

None EIF

Requires improvement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

9.9%per term

warning Above Average

National average: 7.3% for this term (secondary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

5.6%(70 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 7.398% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 1,254 pupils. During this period, there were 124 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 9.9%, which is above the termly national average of 7.3%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg	Perm. Excl.
2024/25 (Spring term)	1,254	124	9.9%	7.3%	0
2024/25 (Autumn term)	1,256	266	21.2%	7.8%	0
2023/24 (Summer term)	1,269	139	11.0%	7.4%	2
2023/24 (Spring term)	1,249	178	14.3%	7.1%	0
2023/24 (Autumn term)	1,264	224	17.7%	8.2%	3
2022/23 (Summer term)	1,253	146	11.7%	6.6%	4
2022/23 (Spring term)	1,237	121	9.8%	6.4%	2
2022/23 (Autumn term)	1,233	97	7.9%	5.9%	2
2021/22 (Summer term)	1,267	64	5.1%	4.7%	1
2021/22 (Spring term)	1,257	69	5.5%	4.9%	1
2021/22 (Autumn term)	1,257	86	6.8%	4.4%	1
2020/21 (Summer term)	1,266	115	9.1%	3.6%	3
2020/21 (Spring term)	1,286	34	2.6%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	1,281	138	10.8%	3.9%	3
2019/20 (Summer term)	1,284	1	0.1%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	1,284	50	3.9%	3.2%	1
2019/20 (Autumn term)	1,289	59	4.6%	4.2%	4
2018/19 (Summer term)	1,272	35	2.8%	3.1%	1
2018/19 (Spring term)	1,277	71	5.6%	3.8%	1
2018/19 (Autumn term)	1,277	34	2.7%	3.8%	2
2017/18 (Summer term)	1,292	65	5.0%	3.4%	1
2017/18 (Spring term)	1,297	49	3.8%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	1,280	64	5.0%	3.7%	4

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 74 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 71 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 62 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 53 pupils

Physical Disability 21 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 16 pupils

Hearing Impairment 10 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 6 pupils

Visual Impairment 3 pupils

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Appleton Academy

School Summary

Academic Performance

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

Student Destinations (After Secondary)

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Distance to School

School Capacity

Primary Admission Trends

Secondary Admission Trends

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Secondary Schools in Bradford

Ilkley Grammar School

Feversham Girls' Secondary Academy

Beckfoot School

Dixons Kings Academy

Dixons Trinity Academy

Dixons City Academy