Ashlands Primary School

Ashlands Primary School is performing well overall, with all key judgements rated good in its first section 5 inspection since becoming an academy. The school converted to academy status in September 2023 and is part of Moorlands Learning Trust; its predecessor school had previously been judged outstanding. Inspectors found a strong sense of community, a clear and ambitious vision shared by staff and trust leaders, and pupils who feel safe, behave well and attend regularly. Pupils take on leadership roles, benefit from a wide range of enrichment opportunities and are well prepared for the next stage of their education. Reading is a particular strength. Well-trained staff teach phonics consistently, struggling pupils are identified and supported swiftly, and pupils develop fluency and expression rapidly. Early years provision is engaging and well led, with high-quality interactions supporting children's language and social development. Personal development is carefully designed, safeguarding is effective, and trustees and governors provide effective oversight. Staff are proud to work at the school and value the professional development and consideration given to their workload and well-being. The main areas for improvement concern curriculum refinement and subject leadership. In some curriculum areas, including early years, the school has not fully identified the specific knowledge pupils should learn, which makes it harder for teachers to check what pupils know and remember. There is also some variability in how the curriculum is taught, and subject leaders in some subjects do not yet have sufficiently secure oversight of curriculum delivery and its impact on pupils' learning.

Strengths

• Strong sense of community and pupil contribution to local events
• Clear and ambitious vision shared by school and trust leaders
• Warm relationships between pupils and staff, with pupils feeling safe
• Positive behaviour and high attendance across the school
• Wide range of leadership roles and enrichment opportunities for pupils
• Ambitious curriculum that typically meets the needs of all pupils, including those with SEND
• High priority on reading with consistently taught phonics and rapid pupil progress
• Effective early years provision with high-quality interactions and strong parent engagement
• Carefully designed personal development programme covering health, safety and relationships
• Effective safeguarding arrangements
• Strong oversight and strategic direction from trustees and governors
• Staff feel supported, with improved professional development and attention to well-being

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum in some areas, including early years, lacks clearly identified key knowledge for pupils to learn and remember
• Teachers sometimes find it difficult to check what pupils know and remember because curriculum knowledge is not fully specified
• There is variability in how the curriculum is taught across the school
• Subject leaders in some subjects do not have sufficiently secure knowledge and oversight of curriculum delivery and impact

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 Ashlands Primary School attended 96.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.9% 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 Ashlands 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 Ashlands Primary School had 18.9 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, 10.5% of pupils at Ashlands Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.9% 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 Ashlands Primary School received £6,750 and spent £7,010 for each of its 299 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £161,000 (-£537 per pupil).

Across all 8 schools of Moorlands Learning Trust, income was £5,833 and spending £5,918 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 Ilkley · Bradford local authority: places and applications

Ashlands Primary School is part of Moorlands Learning Trust, which runs 10 schools. The nearest others:

• Ilkley Grammar School Ilkley
• Ben Rhydding Primary School Ilkley
• Burley Oaks Primary School Ilkley
• Menston Primary School Ilkley
• Eastburn Primary School Keighley
• Benton Park School Leeds
• The Skipton Academy Skipton
• Nidderdale High School Harrogate
• Talbot Primary School Leeds

What is Ashlands Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Ashlands Primary School is Good, from an inspection in June 2025.

When was Ashlands Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Ashlands Primary School was last inspected in June 2025.

How many pupils does Ashlands Primary School have?

Ashlands Primary School has 266 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ashlands Primary School cover?

Ashlands Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

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

In 2025, 66% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Ashlands Primary School?

Ashlands Primary School is at Leeds Road, Ilkley, West Yorkshire, LS29 8JY.