Half Acres Primary Academy

Half Acres Primary Academy is a warm, high-expectation school where pupils behave exceptionally well and achieve well. The curriculum is well sequenced, reading and phonics provision is strong, pupils with SEND are well supported, and early years gives children a positive start. Safeguarding arrangements are effective, and pupils benefit from a rich set of experiences through the Pupil Promise. This was the school’s first routine section 5 inspection; it is an academy within Inspire Partnership Multi-Academy Trust. The main area to improve is lesson tasks: at times, activities do not help pupils practise, embed and deepen the key knowledge and skills set out in the curriculum, so some pupils are not helped to secure and apply their learning as well as they could. Leadership, staff development and trust challenge are notable strengths.

Strengths

• Pupils behave exceptionally well and take responsibility for their own and others’ behaviour.
• There is a strong culture of warmth, kindness and positive relationships across the school.
• The curriculum is well sequenced and helps pupils build increasingly complex knowledge over time.
• Phonics and reading provision are effective, with swift support for pupils who need extra help.
• Pupils with SEND are well supported to access the ambitious curriculum.
• Early years provision gives children a positive start through well-established routines and carefully designed activities.
• The Pupil Promise provides rich experiences that build independence and community contribution.
• Staff are proud to work at the school and benefit from effective professional development and trust support.
• Pupil leaders and well-being ambassadors make a positive contribution to the school community.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Some lesson tasks do not help pupils practise, embed and deepen the key knowledge and skills in the curriculum.

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 Half Acres Primary Academy attended 93.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 14.7% 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, 2.1% of pupils at Half Acres Primary 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 Half Acres Primary Academy had 22.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 14.3% 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, 17.0% of pupils at Half Acres Primary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.7% 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 Half Acres Primary Academy received £5,844 and spent £5,818 for each of its 418 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £333,000 (£798 per pupil).

Across all 9 schools of Inspire Partnership Multi Academy Trust, income was £6,468 and spending £6,416 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 Castleford · Wakefield local authority: places and applications

Half Acres Primary Academy is part of Inspire Partnership Multi Academy Trust, which runs 9 schools. The nearest others:

• Ackton Pastures Primary Academy Castleford
• Featherstone Girnhill Infant School Pontefract
• Fitzwilliam Primary School Pontefract
• Grove Lea Primary School Pontefract
• South Hiendley Primary School Barnsley
• Ash Grove Primary Academy Pontefract
• Towngate Primary Academy Ossett
• Gawthorpe Community Academy Ossett

What is Half Acres Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Half Acres Primary Academy is Good, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was Half Acres Primary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Half Acres Primary Academy was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does Half Acres Primary Academy have?

Half Acres Primary Academy has 424 pupils on roll.

What age range does Half Acres Primary Academy cover?

Half Acres Primary Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Half Acres Primary Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 65% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Half Acres Primary Academy?

Half Acres Primary Academy is at Temple Street, Castleford, West Yorkshire, WF10 5RE.