St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School

St Bartholomew’s C of E Voluntary Controlled Primary School is a larger-than-average Church of England primary in Leeds, inspected in December 2024 after previously being judged good. This graded inspection did not produce an overall effectiveness grade, but the school was judged good in quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. The school places families and community at its heart, and parents are positive about the support they receive. The curriculum is ambitious and well sequenced, teaching is generally effective, reading is a high priority, and pupils with SEND are well supported and fully included. Pupils behave well, feel safe, and benefit from a wide personal development offer including visits, sport, music and leadership opportunities. Early years children get a positive start, with a strong focus on communication and language. Leaders and governors know the school well and are mindful of staff workload. Provisional 2024 key stage 2 outcomes were below national expectations in reading, writing and mathematics, but inspectors note significant context: high pupil mobility and a high proportion of pupils speaking English as an additional language. The main area for improvement is that teachers do not consistently check pupils’ understanding in mathematics and English lessons, including some early reading sessions. This can mean work is not adapted to individual needs, some pupils become distracted, and gaps are not addressed quickly enough, with the school relying too heavily on later catch-up sessions.

Strengths

• Strong sense of community with families at the heart of the school
• Positive relationships with parents and carers that help remove barriers to attendance and learning
• Ambitious, well-designed curriculum with sequenced key knowledge across subjects
• Teachers have secure subject knowledge and explain concepts clearly
• Skilful questioning helps pupils think deeply and secure knowledge
• School-developed strategies such as ‘use it or lose it’ help pupils remember curriculum content
• Reading is a high priority, with a sharp focus on early readers
• Pupils with SEND are well known, effectively supported and fully included in school life
• Early years provision gives children a positive start, especially in communication and language
• Extensive personal development offer including visits, sport, music and assemblies
• Pupils behave well, feel safe and are taught how to stay safe online and in the community
• Governors are knowledgeable, proactive and clear about strengths and next steps
• Leaders are mindful of staff workload and staff feel supported

Areas for Improvement

• Teachers do not consistently check pupils’ understanding in mathematics and English lessons
• Some early reading sessions lack consistent checks on what pupils know and remember
• Curriculum is not always adapted well to meet individual needs during whole-class teaching
• Some pupils become distracted when teaching is not tailored to their needs
• The school does not identify and respond to gaps in younger pupils’ knowledge and skills quickly enough
• The school relies heavily on later catch-up sessions rather than timely in-lesson response
• Provisional 2024 key stage 2 outcomes were below national expectations in reading, writing and mathematics

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School attended 94.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 16.6% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.0% of pupils at St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School had 19.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 22.3% of pupils at St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 0.8% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School received £8,081 and spent £8,332 for each of its 481 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £60,000 (-£126 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

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What is St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School is Good, from an inspection in January 2025.

When was St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School was last inspected in January 2025.

How many pupils does St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School have?

St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School has 497 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School cover?

St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 53% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School?

St Bartholomew's CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School is at Strawberry Lane, Tong Road, St Bartholomews Primary School, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS12 1SF.