Ofsted: Good trending_up Popular emoji_events #53 in Bradford public Top 60% UK

St Francis Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy

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

personMrs Andrea Haines

corporate_fareBLESSED CHRISTOPHER WHARTON CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST

location_onBradford, BD2 4ES

language Visit Website phone 1274638520

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2013

groups

Students

243

school

Expected Standard

60%

local_fire_department

Demand Ratio

1.3x

summarize

St Francis Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy is a Academy converter primary school in Bradford, serving ages 3-11. Rated Good by Ofsted. Demand is above capacity (1.3×) — apply through your local authority on time. Ranks in the top 60% of primary schools nationally.

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School Summary

St Francis Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy is an academy converter in Bradford, admitting pupils aged 3-11. It is part of BLESSED CHRISTOPHER WHARTON CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST. The school has approximately 224 pupils on roll, of whom 11% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 60% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 7% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #53 of 156 primaries in Bradford and #4,793 of 14,143 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2013. The school's current overall rating is Good.

The school is oversubscribed — in the most recent cycle, there were 1.3× as many applications as places, making a successful application competitive.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 24.3:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 3.1 per 1,000 pupils per term.

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

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

60%

LA 60%

Reading77% LA 73%

Writing60% LA 70%

Maths77% LA 71%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

103

GPS SS

105

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

77%

LA 58%England 61%

Reading87% LA 71% · Eng 74%

Writing80% LA 70% · Eng 72%

Maths87% LA 72% · Eng 73%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

106

GPS SS

110

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

60%

LA 57%England 60%

Reading87% LA 69% · Eng 73%

Writing77% LA 71% · Eng 71%

Maths80% LA 71% · Eng 73%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

104

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

1.4

Read

LA -0.6

-0.9 to 3.7

1.8

Write

LA 0.1

-0.4 to 4.0

1.1

Maths

LA -0.1

-1.1 to 3.2

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

No digital report timeline available.

Inspection History

2 Evaluations

2013-01-16

S5 Inspection EIF

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2010-11-02

None EIF

Requires improvement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

gavel

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

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

Suspension Rate

3.6%per term

warning Above Average

National average: 0.8% for this term (primary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.9%(2 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: 1.225% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 224 pupils. During this period, there were 8 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 3.6%, which is above the termly national average of 0.8%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg
2024/25 (Spring term)	224	8	3.6%	0.8%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	222	6	2.7%	0.9%
2023/24 (Summer term)	241	0	0.0%	0.8%
2023/24 (Spring term)	240	1	0.4%	0.7%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	232	0	0.0%	0.8%
2022/23 (Summer term)	244	1	0.4%	0.7%
2022/23 (Spring term)	243	0	0.0%	0.6%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	234	0	0.0%	0.6%
2021/22 (Summer term)	236	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Spring term)	233	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	224	0	0.0%	0.5%
2020/21 (Summer term)	234	0	0.0%	0.4%
2020/21 (Spring term)	231	0	0.0%	0.1%
2020/21 (Autumn term)	228	0	0.0%	0.4%
2019/20 (Autumn term)	236	1	0.4%	0.6%

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.

Speech, Language & Communication 21 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 10 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 10 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 8 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 6 pupils

Visual Impairment 1 pupils

Multi-Sensory Impairment 1 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 1 pupils

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Parent View on Pastoral Care

Results from the official Ofsted Parent View survey, reflecting direct parent sentiment regarding the school environment.

My child is happy at this school.

95.0%Positive

My child feels safe at this school.

86.0%Positive

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

18.0%Positive

View All Survey Responseskeyboard_arrow_down

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

strongly agree47%

agree37%

disagree12%

strongly disagree2%

don't know2%

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

strongly agree53%

agree33%

disagree7%

strongly disagree7%

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

strongly agree42%

agree23%

disagree9%

strongly disagree12%

don't know2%

not applicable12%

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

yes40%

no60%

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

strongly agree29%

agree47%

disagree12%

strongly disagree12%

The school has high expectations for my child.

strongly agree53%

agree33%

disagree7%

strongly disagree5%

don't know2%

My child does well at this school.

strongly agree56%

agree37%

disagree2%

strongly disagree2%

don't know2%

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

strongly agree56%

agree23%

disagree16%

don't know5%

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

strongly agree58%

agree37%

disagree2%

don't know2%

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

strongly agree56%

agree37%

don't know7%

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

strongly agree47%

agree28%

disagree12%

strongly disagree2%

don't know12%

I would recommend this school to another parent.

yes81%

no19%

Top Primary Schools in Bradford

Other highly-ranked schools in the same local authority

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Marshfield Primary

Good

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Brackenhill Primary School

Good

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Newhall Park Primary School

Good

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Merlin Top Primary Academy

Outstanding

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Farfield Primary and Nursery School

Good

location_on Bradford, BD6 2BS

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Thornbury Primary Leadership Academy

Good

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School Summary

Academic Performance

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Faith Priority (Catholic)

Distance to School

School Capacity

Primary 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)

Parent View on Pastoral Care

My child is happy at this school.

My child feels safe at this school.

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

The school has high expectations for my child.

My child does well at this school.

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

I would recommend this school to another parent.

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Primary Schools in Bradford

Marshfield Primary

Brackenhill Primary School

Newhall Park Primary School

Merlin Top Primary Academy

Farfield Primary and Nursery School

Thornbury Primary Leadership Academy