Thornton Primary School
Thornton Road, Thornton, Bradford, BD13 3NN
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- FOCUS ACADEMY TRUST (UK) LTD
- Headteacher
- Mrs Elizabeth Davison
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Focus Academy Trust (UK) Ltd
- SEN provision
- SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health
- Constituency
- Bradford West
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 600
- Pupils on roll
- 449
- URN
- 143944
- Local authority
- Bradford
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01274833839
About this school
Thornton Primary School is a primary academy in Bradford. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 449 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
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
A short monitoring inspection followed on : inspectors found that standards have been maintained.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 74 | 86 | 66 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 51% | 49% | 45% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 3% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 72% | 76% | 62% |
| Expected standard in maths | 65% | 55% | 68% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 61% | 51% | 45% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 105.0 | 102.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 102.0 | 101.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.30 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -2.00 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.60 | - | - |
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 Thornton 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 | Bradford average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 51% | 56.6% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 49% | 58.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 45% | 59.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 533 |
| 2023/24 | 503 |
| 2024/25 | 475 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Thornton Primary School compares
Thornton Primary School ranked 137th of 159 primary schools in Bradford for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 16% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 40% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 45% | 5.9% | 28.7% | 449 | — |
| Foxhill Primary School | 77% | 4% | 10.1% | 231 | 1.2 miles |
| Keelham Primary School | 81% | 4.8% | 12.5% | 111 | 1.2 miles |
| The Academy At St. James | 49% | 6.1% | 48.2% | 310 | 1.3 miles |
| Ley Top Primary School | 40% | 6.9% | 51.7% | 338 | 1.6 miles |
| St Matthew's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy | 65% | 5.3% | 29.7% | 218 | 1.6 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.
Inspection history
-
Ungraded inspection report25 June 2025
- 16 January 2020
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 28.67%
- English as an additional language
- 3.6%
- Overall absence
- 5.9%
- Persistent absence
- 15.15%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Foxhill Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
Keelham Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
The Academy At St. James1.3 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
Ley Top Primary School1.6 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
St Matthew's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy1.6 miles
Primary · Bradford
Other schools in Bradford
Thornton Primary School ranks 96th 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 year groups does Thornton Primary School teach?
- Thornton Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Bradford.
- Who is the headteacher of Thornton Primary School?
- The headteacher of Thornton Primary School is Mrs Elizabeth Davison, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Thornton Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Thornton 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 big is Thornton Primary School?
- Thornton Primary School has 449 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Thornton Primary School full?
- Thornton Primary School has capacity for 600 pupils and 449 on roll (75%), 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 Thornton Primary School a faith school?
- No. Thornton Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Thornton Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Thornton Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Who runs Thornton Primary School?
- Thornton Primary School is part of FOCUS ACADEMY TRUST (UK) LTD. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Thornton Primary School have?
- The schools register lists Thornton Primary School's special educational needs provision as: SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Thornton Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 51% in 2022/23 and 45% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Thornton Primary School rank locally?
- Thornton Primary School ranked 137th of 159 primary schools in Bradford for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 16% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 40% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Thornton Primary School's absence rate?
- Thornton Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.9% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Thornton Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Thornton 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 2 July 2026.