Whetley Academy
Whetley Lane, Girlington, Bradford, BD8 9HZ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- DELTA ACADEMIES TRUST
- Head of Academy
- Mr Jonny Townend
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Delta Academies Trust
- Constituency
- Bradford West
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 710
- Pupils on roll
- 387
- URN
- 139046
- Local authority
- Bradford
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01274422041
About this school
Whetley Academy is a primary academy in Bradford. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 387 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Whetley Academy, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 28 September 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 61 | 74 | 72 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 36% | 54% | 50% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 5% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 43% | 57% | 67% |
| Expected standard in maths | 56% | 72% | 71% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 33% | 49% | 43% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 99.0 | 101.0 | 102.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 99.0 | 103.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.40 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +2.70 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +2.10 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Whetley Academy has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Bradford average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 36% | 56.6% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 54% | 58.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 50% | 59.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 517 |
| 2023/24 | 501 |
| 2024/25 | 466 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Whetley Academy compares
Whetley Academy ranked 126th of 159 primary schools in Bradford for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 21% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 23% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 50% | 7.2% | 36.7% | 387 | — |
| Girlington Primary School | 47% | 5.1% | 42.5% | 492 | 0.1 miles |
| St Philip's CofE Primary School | 70% | 6.3% | 39.6% | 210 | 0.2 miles |
| St William's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy | 60% | 4% | 41.6% | 117 | 0.4 miles |
| Lilycroft Primary School | 70% | 6.2% | 35% | 367 | 0.4 miles |
| Miriam Lord Primary School | 65% | 5.9% | 28.5% | 370 | 0.4 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 36.67%
- English as an additional language
- 94.8%
- Overall absence
- 7.23%
- Persistent absence
- 26.53%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Girlington Primary School0.1 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
St Philip's CofE Primary School0.2 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
St William's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy0.4 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
Lilycroft Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
Miriam Lord Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Bradford
Other schools in Bradford
Whetley Academy ranks 87th of the 110 ranked primary schools in Bradford.
- All Saints CofE Primary School Primary
- Atlas Community Primary School Primary
- Bankfoot Primary School Primary
- Barkerend Primary Leadership Academy Primary
- Beckfoot Allerton Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Beckfoot Heaton Primary Primary
- Birkenshaw Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Blakehill Primary School Primary
- Bowling Park Primary School Primary
- Brackenhill Primary School Primary
- Byron Primary School Primary
- Carlton Mills Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Whetley Academy teach?
- Whetley Academy teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in Bradford.
- Who is the head of academy of Whetley Academy?
- The head of academy of Whetley Academy is Mr Jonny Townend, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Whetley Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Whetley Academy, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Whetley Academy?
- Whetley Academy has 387 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is Whetley Academy full?
- Whetley Academy has capacity for 710 pupils and 387 on roll (55%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Whetley Academy a faith school?
- No. Whetley Academy has no designated religious character.
- Does Whetley Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Whetley Academy as having nursery classes.
- Is Whetley Academy part of an academy trust?
- Whetley Academy is part of DELTA ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Whetley Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 36% in 2022/23 and 50% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Whetley Academy compare with other schools in Bradford?
- Whetley Academy ranked 126th of 159 primary schools in Bradford for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 21% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 23% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Whetley Academy's absence rate?
- Whetley Academy's overall absence rate is 7.2% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Whetley Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Whetley Academy's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 1 July 2026.