Laithes Primary School

Laithes Primary School is a larger-than-average primary in a deprived area of Barnsley, with high proportions of pupils eligible for free school meals and pupils with EHC plans. It has a resourced SEN unit, The Hub, for 12 pupils with communication and language difficulties with autism, and is part of the Every Child Matters trust. The inspection found the school performing strongly overall: safeguarding is met, and most areas are judged strong standard, including achievement, curriculum and teaching, early years, inclusion, and leadership and governance. Attendance and behaviour is judged expected standard. Leaders provide an ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum and consistently effective teaching. Pupils achieve well, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, with particularly strong phonics and early reading. Early years provision is carefully designed around language development. Inclusion is a key strength: staff make skilful adaptations, and The Hub provides highly effective support for pupils with complex SEND, including those who cannot communicate verbally. Leadership and governance are robust and improvement-focused, with strong staff development and family engagement. Pupils are safe, happy, behave well, and benefit from strong pastoral care and a wide range of enrichment opportunities. The main area for development is attendance. Although attendance is improving and persistent absence is reducing, overall absence and persistent absence remain above national averages. Leaders should continue to analyse patterns closely, act promptly on concerns, and work with families to reduce persistent absence further. No other significant concerns were identified.

Strengths

• Ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum that builds knowledge logically from early years to key stage 2
• Consistently effective teaching with high expectations and strong subject knowledge
• Strong phonics provision that helps pupils become fluent readers by the end of key stage 1
• Pupils achieve well, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND
• Highly effective early years provision focused on language development
• Deeply embedded culture of inclusion with skilful adaptations for SEND and disadvantaged pupils
• The Hub provides highly effective support for pupils with complex SEND, including non-verbal communication systems
• Strong leadership and governance with a relentless focus on continuous improvement
• Effective staff training and professional development, with staff sharing expertise across the trust
• Strong pastoral care and multi-agency support for pupils and families
• Positive behaviour and engagement in lessons, with rare bullying and consistent routines
• Personal development promoted through a tailored curriculum, enrichment, trips, and leadership opportunities
• Pupils are articulate, confident communicators and well prepared for life in modern Britain
• Leaders are rigorous in improving attendance, with improving figures and reducing persistent absence

Areas for Improvement

• Overall absence and persistent absence remain above national averages, although improving.
• Leaders need to sustain the upward trend in attendance by closely analysing patterns, acting promptly, and working with families to reduce persistent absence.

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 Laithes Primary School attended 92.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 28.0% 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, 0.3% of pupils at Laithes 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 Laithes Primary School had 16.3 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, 18.8% of pupils at Laithes Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 8.8% 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 2024–25 Laithes Primary School received £8,127 and spent £8,986 for each of its 307 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £656,000 (£2,135 per pupil).

Across all 11 schools of Every Child Matters Academy Trust, income was £7,232 and spending £7,315 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Barnsley · Barnsley local authority: places and applications

Laithes Primary School is part of Every Child Matters Academy Trust, which runs 11 schools. The nearest others:

• Athersley South Primary School Barnsley
• Wilthorpe Primary School Barnsley
• Wellgate Primary School Barnsley
• Barugh Green Primary School Barnsley
• Kexborough Primary School Barnsley
• Ladywood Primary School Barnsley
• High View Primary Learning Centre Barnsley
• Wombwell Park Street Primary School Barnsley
• Sandhill Primary School Barnsley
• Hoyland Springwood Primary School Barnsley

What is Laithes Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Laithes Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Laithes Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Laithes Primary School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Laithes Primary School have?

Laithes Primary School has 308 pupils on roll.

What age range does Laithes Primary School cover?

Laithes Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Laithes Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 68% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Laithes Primary School?

Laithes Primary School is at Laithes Lane, Smithies, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S71 3AF.