Sun Academy Bradwell
Cauldon Avenue, Bradwell, Newcastle-Under-Lyme, ST5 8JN
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- ACADEMY TRANSFORMATION TRUST
- Principal
- Mrs Laura Niemczyk
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Academy Transformation Trust
- Constituency
- Newcastle-under-Lyme
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 167
- URN
- 142194
- Local authority
- Staffordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01782973855
About this school
Sun Academy Bradwell is a primary academy in Newcastle-under-Lyme. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 167 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. 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 21 February 2024, 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 | 30 | 31 | 26 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 63% | 68% | 77% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 6% | 19% |
| Expected standard in reading | 70% | 81% | 88% |
| Expected standard in maths | 73% | 77% | 85% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 80% | 90% | 88% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 104.0 | 108.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | 104.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.40 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.00 | - | - |
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 Sun Academy Bradwell has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Staffordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 63% | 59.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 68% | 61.7% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 77% | 62% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 182 |
| 2023/24 | 164 |
| 2024/25 | 161 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Sun Academy Bradwell compares
Sun Academy Bradwell ranked 52nd of 229 primary schools in Staffordshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 82% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 77% | 5% | 39.1% | 167 | — |
| Bursley Academy | 67% | 4.5% | 16.5% | 400 | 0.3 miles |
| Chesterton Primary School | 38% | 5.4% | 65% | 155 | 0.4 miles |
| Churchfields Primary School | 44% | 5.8% | 31.6% | 391 | 0.5 miles |
| Crackley Bank Primary School | 78% | 7.1% | 56.2% | 198 | 0.8 miles |
| Ellison Primary Academy | 72% | 5% | 18.6% | 329 | 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)
- 39.13%
- English as an additional language
- 6.2%
- Overall absence
- 4.97%
- Persistent absence
- 11.56%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Bursley Academy0.3 miles
Primary · Newcastle
-
Chesterton Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Newcastle-Under-Lyme
-
Churchfields Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Newcastle
-
Crackley Bank Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Newcastle
-
Ellison Primary Academy1.0 miles
Primary · Newcastle
Other schools in Newcastle-under-Lyme
Sun Academy Bradwell ranks 2nd of the 5 ranked primary schools in Newcastle-under-Lyme.
- Baldwins Gate CofE(VC) Primary School Primary
- Chesterton Primary School Primary
- Seabridge Primary School Primary
- Westlands Primary School Primary
- Clayton Hall Academy Secondary
- Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group 16 plus
- Blackfriars Academy Academies
- Cedars - Newcastle, Moorlands and Darwin Bases Local authority maintained schools
- Kaleidoscope School Special schools
- Edenhurst Preparatory School Independent schools
- Newcastle-under-Lyme School Independent schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Sun Academy Bradwell teach?
- Sun Academy Bradwell teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Newcastle-under-Lyme.
- Who is the principal of Sun Academy Bradwell?
- The principal of Sun Academy Bradwell is Mrs Laura Niemczyk, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Sun Academy Bradwell last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Sun Academy Bradwell, 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 Sun Academy Bradwell?
- Sun Academy Bradwell has 167 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Sun Academy Bradwell full?
- Sun Academy Bradwell has capacity for 210 pupils and 167 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 Sun Academy Bradwell a faith school?
- No. Sun Academy Bradwell has no designated religious character.
- Does Sun Academy Bradwell have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Sun Academy Bradwell as having nursery classes.
- Who runs Sun Academy Bradwell?
- Sun Academy Bradwell is part of ACADEMY TRANSFORMATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Sun Academy Bradwell's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 63% in 2022/23 and 77% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Sun Academy Bradwell rank locally?
- Sun Academy Bradwell ranked 52nd of 229 primary schools in Staffordshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 82% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Sun Academy Bradwell's absence rate?
- Sun Academy Bradwell's overall absence rate is 5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Sun Academy Bradwell's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Sun Academy Bradwell'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.