Yew Tree Primary Academy

Yew Tree Primary Academy has been evaluated as a good school following its first inspection under section 5 of the Education Act. The school fosters a positive environment where pupils enjoy learning and demonstrate respectful behavior towards each other and staff. Strong emphasis is placed on reading and personal development, supported by an ambitious curriculum and well-trained staff, which particularly benefits pupils with special educational needs. Children in the early years also thrive in their learning, and the school effectively promotes pupils' engagement with various extracurricular activities that contribute to their overall personal growth.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy learning and display pride in their school uniform.
• High expectations from staff contribute to pupils’ good behavior and achievement.
• Most pupils, including those with SEND, achieve well across the curriculum.
• A well-organized phonics curriculum supports early reading effectively.
• Opportunities for extracurricular activities enhance pupils’ personal development.
• Pupils participate in various community initiatives, building their citizenship skills.

Areas for Improvement

• Leaders have not precisely identified knowledge and skills in a small number of subjects.
• Persistent absence among some pupils negatively impacts their achievement and development.

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 Yew Tree Primary Academy attended 91.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 31.2% 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 Yew Tree 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 Yew Tree Primary Academy had 20.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 20.0% 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, 23.0% of pupils at Yew Tree Primary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 17.7% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 28 pupils.

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 Yew Tree Primary Academy received £11,108 and spent £10,632 for each of its 232 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £115,000 (£498 per pupil).

Across all 9 schools of Wade Deacon Trust, income was £9,213 and spending £8,949 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 Knowsley · Knowsley local authority: places and applications

Yew Tree Primary Academy is part of Wade Deacon Trust, which runs 10 schools. The nearest others:

• Halewood Academy Knowsley
• Sylvester Primary Academy Liverpool
• Whiston Willis Primary Academy Prescot
• Widnes Academy Widnes
• Wade Deacon High School Widnes
• Weston Point Primary Academy Runcorn
• Oakdene Primary Academy Prescot
• The Grange School Runcorn
• Hillside High School Bootle

What is Yew Tree Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Yew Tree Primary Academy is Good, from an inspection in March 2023.

When was Yew Tree Primary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Yew Tree Primary Academy was last inspected in March 2023.

How many pupils does Yew Tree Primary Academy have?

Yew Tree Primary Academy has 226 pupils on roll.

What age range does Yew Tree Primary Academy cover?

Yew Tree Primary Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Yew Tree Primary Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 29% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Yew Tree Primary Academy?

Yew Tree Primary Academy is at The Avenue, Halewood, Knowsley, Merseyside, L26 1UU.