St Helen's CE Primary School
Highfield Road, Hemsworth, Pontefract, WF9 4EG
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- ENHANCE ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Rob Harvey
- Religious ethos
- None
- Diocese
- Diocese of Leeds (ce)
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Enhance Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Normanton and Hemsworth
- Setting
- Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 270
- Pupils on roll
- 215
- URN
- 139573
- Local authority
- Wakefield
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01977617955
About this school
St Helen's CE Primary School is a Church of England primary academy in Pontefract. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 215 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Helen's CE Primary School, 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
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 42 | 32 | 31 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 43% | 69% | 58% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 5% | 3% | 3% |
| Expected standard in reading | 52% | 88% | 84% |
| Expected standard in maths | 55% | 88% | 74% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 64% | 72% | 65% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 101.0 | 107.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 100.0 | 104.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.60 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +3.90 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +1.80 | - | - |
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 St Helen's CE Primary School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Wakefield average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 43% | 59.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 69% | 62.8% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 58% | 63.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 229 |
| 2023/24 | 211 |
| 2024/25 | 217 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Helen's CE Primary School compares
St Helen's CE Primary School ranked 63rd of 98 primary schools in Wakefield for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 36% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 36% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 58% | 6.2% | 47.7% | 215 | — |
| Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School | 30% | 7.6% | 34.9% | 119 | 0.3 miles |
| West End Academy | 73% | 5.1% | 30.7% | 187 | 0.5 miles |
| Grove Lea Primary School | 77% | 3.9% | 20.6% | 244 | 0.6 miles |
| Brierley Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School | 86% | 6.7% | 22.6% | 205 | 1.2 miles |
| King's Meadow Academy | 45% | 6.8% | 45.7% | 234 | 1.5 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)
- 47.67%
- English as an additional language
- 6.5%
- Overall absence
- 6.19%
- Persistent absence
- 21.26%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Pontefract
-
West End Academy0.5 miles
Primary · Pontefract
-
Grove Lea Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Pontefract
-
Brierley Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Barnsley
-
King's Meadow Academy1.5 miles
Primary · Pontefract
Other schools in Pontefract
St Helen's CE Primary School ranks 19th of the 33 ranked primary schools in Pontefract.
- Ackworth Howard Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior and Infant School Primary
- Ackworth Mill Dam School Primary
- Ash Grove Primary Academy Primary
- Badsworth Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior and Infant School Primary
- Carleton Park Junior and Infant School Primary
- Cherry Tree Academy Primary
- Darrington Church of England Primary School Primary
- De Lacy Primary School Primary
- Featherstone All Saints CofE Academy Primary
- Featherstone Girnhill Infant School Primary
- Featherstone North Featherstone Junior and Infant School Primary
- Featherstone Purston Infant School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Helen's CE Primary School teach?
- St Helen's CE Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Pontefract.
- Who is the headteacher of St Helen's CE Primary School?
- The headteacher of St Helen's CE Primary School is Mr Rob Harvey, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Helen's CE Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Helen's CE Primary School, 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 St Helen's CE Primary School?
- St Helen's CE Primary School has 215 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is St Helen's CE Primary School full?
- St Helen's CE Primary School has capacity for 270 pupils and 215 on roll (80%), 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 St Helen's CE Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. St Helen's CE Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Leeds (ce).
- Does St Helen's CE Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St Helen's CE Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is St Helen's CE Primary School part of an academy trust?
- St Helen's CE Primary School is part of ENHANCE ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have St Helen's CE Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 43% in 2022/23 and 58% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does St Helen's CE Primary School compare with other schools in Wakefield?
- St Helen's CE Primary School ranked 63rd of 98 primary schools in Wakefield for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 36% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 36% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is St Helen's CE Primary School's absence rate?
- St Helen's CE Primary School's overall absence rate is 6.2% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Helen's CE Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Helen's CE Primary School'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.