Alston Primary School
Alston Road, Bordesley Green East, Birmingham, B9 5UN
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- LEIGH TRUST
- Head Teacher
- Ms Emma Simpson
- Religious ethos
- None
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Leigh Trust
- SEN provision
- ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder
- Constituency
- Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 669
- Pupils on roll
- 636
- URN
- 140656
- Local authority
- Birmingham
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01214641569
About this school
Alston Primary School is a primary academy in Birmingham. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 636 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Alston 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
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 26 February 2025, where inspectors found that standards have been maintained. 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 | 88 | 90 | 87 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 58% | 50% | 59% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 5% | 7% | 6% |
| Expected standard in reading | 67% | 63% | 69% |
| Expected standard in maths | 74% | 66% | 70% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 70% | 72% | 76% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 101.0 | 101.0 | 103.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | 102.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.90 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.40 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.50 | - | - |
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 Alston 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 | Birmingham average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 58% | 55.7% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 50% | 58.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 59% | 60.1% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 656 |
| 2023/24 | 641 |
| 2024/25 | 634 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Alston Primary School compares
Alston Primary School ranked 184th of 266 primary schools in Birmingham for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 38% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 35% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 59% | 6.2% | 54.8% | 636 | — |
| Bordesley Green Primary School | 46% | 8.3% | 52.8% | 639 | 0.4 miles |
| St Cuthbert's RC Junior and Infant (NC) School | 52% | 6.4% | 61.4% | 234 | 0.6 miles |
| Thornton Primary School | 67% | 6.9% | 58.5% | 473 | 0.7 miles |
| Shaw Hill Primary School | 70% | 7.2% | 56.7% | 474 | 0.7 miles |
| Sladefield Infant School | — | 6.8% | 45.8% | 266 | 0.8 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)
- 54.75%
- English as an additional language
- 85.2%
- Overall absence
- 6.21%
- Persistent absence
- 17.4%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Bordesley Green Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Birmingham
-
St Cuthbert's RC Junior and Infant (NC) School0.6 miles
Primary · Birmingham
-
Thornton Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Birmingham
-
Shaw Hill Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Birmingham
-
Sladefield Infant School0.8 miles
Primary · Birmingham
Other schools in Birmingham
Alston Primary School ranks 184th of the 273 ranked primary schools in Birmingham.
- Abbey Catholic Primary School Primary
- Acocks Green Primary School Primary
- Adderley Primary School Primary
- Al-Furqan Primary School Primary
- Albert Bradbeer Primary Academy Primary
- Allens Croft Primary School Primary
- Anderton Park Primary School Primary
- Anglesey Primary School Primary
- Arden Primary School Primary
- Ark Tindal Primary Academy Primary
- Aston Tower Community Primary School Primary
- Audley Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Alston Primary School teach?
- Alston Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Birmingham.
- Who is the head teacher of Alston Primary School?
- The head teacher of Alston Primary School is Ms Emma Simpson, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Alston Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Alston 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 Alston Primary School?
- Alston Primary School has 636 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Alston Primary School full?
- Alston Primary School has capacity for 669 pupils and 636 on roll (95%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Alston Primary School a faith school?
- No. Alston Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Alston Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Alston Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is Alston Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Alston Primary School is part of LEIGH TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Alston Primary School have?
- The schools register lists Alston Primary School's special educational needs provision as: ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Alston Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 58% in 2022/23 and 59% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Alston Primary School compare with other schools in Birmingham?
- Alston Primary School ranked 184th of 266 primary schools in Birmingham for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 38% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 35% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Alston Primary School's absence rate?
- Alston Primary School's overall absence rate is 6.2% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Alston Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Alston 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.