Orchard Primary Academy
Princess Road, Chickenley, Dewsbury, WF12 8QT
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- SOUTH PENNINE ACADEMIES
- Principal
- Mr Matthew Carbutt
- Religious ethos
- None
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- SOUTH PENNINE ACADEMIES
- Constituency
- Dewsbury and Batley
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 350
- Pupils on roll
- 363
- URN
- 142003
- Local authority
- Kirklees
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01924469578
About this school
Orchard Primary Academy is a primary academy in Dewsbury. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 363 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person 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 | 46 | 51 | 42 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 30% | 40% | 43% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 7% | 6% | 2% |
| Expected standard in reading | 41% | 59% | 62% |
| Expected standard in maths | 54% | 57% | 52% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 39% | 45% | 60% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 99.0 | 100.0 | 102.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 100.0 | 101.0 | 101.0 |
| Reading progress | -4.90 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -3.20 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -3.00 | - | - |
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 Orchard Primary 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 | Kirklees average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 30% | 56.2% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 40% | 57.8% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 43% | 58.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 9.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 414 |
| 2023/24 | 414 |
| 2024/25 | 381 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Orchard Primary Academy compares
Orchard Primary Academy ranked 91st of 101 primary schools in Kirklees for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 14% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 17% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 43% | 7.9% | 71% | 363 | — |
| Earlsheaton Infant School | — | 5.5% | 25.8% | 80 | 0.4 miles |
| Gawthorpe Community Academy | 60% | 3.5% | 29.8% | 231 | 0.6 miles |
| Bywell Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School | 73% | 5.3% | 29.8% | 384 | 0.7 miles |
| Ossett Holy Trinity CofE VA Primary School | 53% | 5.7% | 14.6% | 341 | 1.0 miles |
| Eastborough Academy | 68% | 6.1% | 36% | 214 | 1.0 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)
- 71%
- English as an additional language
- 6.6%
- Overall absence
- 7.93%
- Persistent absence
- 25.71%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Earlsheaton Infant School0.4 miles
Primary · Dewsbury
-
Gawthorpe Community Academy0.6 miles
Primary · Ossett
-
Bywell Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School0.7 miles
Primary · Dewsbury
-
Ossett Holy Trinity CofE VA Primary School1.0 miles
Primary · Ossett
-
Eastborough Academy1.0 miles
Primary · Dewsbury
Other schools in Dewsbury
Orchard Primary Academy ranks 9th of the 12 ranked primary schools in Dewsbury.
- Boothroyd Primary Academy Primary
- Bywell Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School Primary
- Carlton Junior and Infant School Primary
- Diamond Wood Community Academy Primary
- Earlsheaton Infant School Primary
- Eastborough Academy Primary
- Headfield Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School Primary
- Overthorpe CofE Academy Primary
- Pentland Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Ravensthorpe Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School Primary
- Savile Town Church of England Voluntary Controlled Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Shaw Cross Infant and Nursery School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Orchard Primary Academy teach?
- Orchard Primary Academy teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in Dewsbury.
- Who is the principal of Orchard Primary Academy?
- The principal of Orchard Primary Academy is Mr Matthew Carbutt, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Orchard Primary Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Orchard Primary 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 big is Orchard Primary Academy?
- Orchard Primary Academy has 363 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is Orchard Primary Academy full?
- Orchard Primary Academy has capacity for 350 pupils and 363 on roll (104%), so it is at or above 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 Orchard Primary Academy a faith school?
- No. Orchard Primary Academy has no designated religious character.
- Does Orchard Primary Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Orchard Primary Academy as having nursery classes.
- Who runs Orchard Primary Academy?
- Orchard Primary Academy is part of SOUTH PENNINE ACADEMIES. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Orchard Primary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 30% in 2022/23 and 43% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Orchard Primary Academy rank locally?
- Orchard Primary Academy ranked 91st of 101 primary schools in Kirklees for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 14% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 17% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Orchard Primary Academy's absence rate?
- Orchard Primary Academy's overall absence rate is 7.9% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Orchard Primary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Orchard Primary 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 2 July 2026.