South Kirkby Academy

South Kirkby Academy has shown significant progress since its last inspection, moving from a 'Requires Improvement' grade to 'Good'. The leadership team has high expectations for pupils and works diligently to ensure they achieve well in a supportive environment. The school places a strong emphasis on safeguarding and ensuring that pupils feel safe and valued. Furthermore, the personal development of pupils is prioritized, with a variety of extracurricular activities available that help foster their talents and interests.

Strengths

• Leaders have high ambitions for pupils.
• Staff know pupils and their families well.
• Pupils behave well and show self-regulation.
• Strong emphasis on reading across the school.
• Pupils receive well-thought-out personal development opportunities.
• Governance is strong and effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils do not attend school regularly.
• Learning interventions lead to missed lessons and gaps in knowledge.
• Important knowledge not clearly identified in some subjects.

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 South Kirkby Academy attended 93.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 19.3% 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, 3.8% of pupils at South Kirkby Academy 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 South Kirkby Academy had 19.0 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, 11.8% of pupils at South Kirkby Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.7% 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 South Kirkby Academy received £7,655 and spent £7,440 for each of its 208 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £437,000 (£2,101 per pupil).

Across all 13 schools of Waterton Academy Trust, income was £7,509 and spending £7,385 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 Pontefract · Wakefield local authority: places and applications

South Kirkby Academy is part of Waterton Academy Trust, which runs 16 schools. The nearest others:

• West End Academy Pontefract
• King's Meadow Academy Pontefract
• Churchfield Primary School Barnsley
• Ackworth Mill Dam School Pontefract
• Kings Oak Primary Barnsley
• Crofton Infant School Wakefield
• Sharlston Community School Wakefield
• Walton Primary Academy Wakefield
• Jump Primary Academy Barnsley
• Cherry Tree Academy Pontefract

What is South Kirkby Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for South Kirkby Academy is Good, from an inspection in July 2023.

When was South Kirkby Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

South Kirkby Academy was last inspected in July 2023.

How many pupils does South Kirkby Academy have?

South Kirkby Academy has 186 pupils on roll.

What age range does South Kirkby Academy cover?

South Kirkby Academy for pupils aged 7 to 11.

What are South Kirkby Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 32% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is South Kirkby Academy?

South Kirkby Academy is at Stockingate, South Kirkby, Pontefract, West Yorkshire, WF9 3DP.