Cherry Tree Academy
Cobblers Lane, Pontefract, WF8 2HN
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- WATERTON ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Adam Dawson
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Waterton Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 315
- Pupils on roll
- 233
- URN
- 144400
- Local authority
- Wakefield
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01924967603
About this school
Cherry Tree Academy is a primary academy in Pontefract. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 233 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Cherry Tree Academy, and its latest judgement is set out 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
- Requires improvement
- 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 | 43 | 42 | 43 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 26% | 43% | 49% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 2% | 5% |
| Expected standard in reading | 40% | 55% | 53% |
| Expected standard in maths | 44% | 50% | 60% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 49% | 43% | 47% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 98.0 | 101.0 | 101.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 98.0 | 98.0 | 100.0 |
| Reading progress | -5.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.70 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -4.90 | - | - |
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 Cherry Tree 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 | Wakefield average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 26% | 59.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 43% | 62.8% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 49% | 63.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 257 |
| 2023/24 | 243 |
| 2024/25 | 240 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Cherry Tree Academy compares
Cherry Tree Academy ranked 79th of 98 primary schools in Wakefield for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 20% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 22% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 49% | 7.4% | 50% | 233 | — |
| Holy Family and St Michael's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy | 35% | 8.3% | 28.1% | 199 | 0.1 miles |
| De Lacy Primary School | 80% | 4.6% | 51.9% | 342 | 0.3 miles |
| St Giles C of E Academy | 78% | 5.1% | 22.3% | 337 | 0.9 miles |
| The Rookeries Carleton Junior and Infant School | 73% | 3.7% | 20.9% | 330 | 1.0 miles |
| Orchard Head Junior and Infant and Nursery School | 89% | 4.4% | 20.4% | 335 | 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)
- 50%
- English as an additional language
- 9.6%
- Overall absence
- 7.36%
- Persistent absence
- 18.75%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Holy Family and St Michael's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy0.1 miles
Primary · Pontefract
-
De Lacy Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Pontefract
-
St Giles C of E Academy0.9 miles
Primary · Pontefract
-
The Rookeries Carleton Junior and Infant School1.0 miles
Primary · Pontefract
-
Orchard Head Junior and Infant and Nursery School1.0 miles
Primary · Pontefract
Other schools in Pontefract
Cherry Tree Academy ranks 23rd 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
- 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
- Featherstone Purston St Thomas Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Cherry Tree Academy teach?
- Cherry Tree Academy teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Pontefract.
- Who is the headteacher of Cherry Tree Academy?
- The headteacher of Cherry Tree Academy is Mr Adam Dawson, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Cherry Tree Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Cherry Tree 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 many pupils are at Cherry Tree Academy?
- Cherry Tree Academy has 233 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Cherry Tree Academy full?
- Cherry Tree Academy has capacity for 315 pupils and 233 on roll (74%), 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 Cherry Tree Academy a faith school?
- No. Cherry Tree Academy has no designated religious character.
- Does Cherry Tree Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Cherry Tree Academy as having nursery classes.
- Is Cherry Tree Academy part of an academy trust?
- Cherry Tree Academy is part of WATERTON ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Cherry Tree Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 26% in 2022/23 and 49% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Cherry Tree Academy compare with other schools in Wakefield?
- Cherry Tree Academy ranked 79th of 98 primary schools in Wakefield for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 20% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 22% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Cherry Tree Academy's absence rate?
- Cherry Tree Academy's overall absence rate is 7.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Cherry Tree Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Cherry Tree 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 10 July 2026.