Ark Northfield Primary School
Primary · Academy sponsor led · Mixed · Wakefield
Northfield Lane, Pontefract, WF9 3LY
–
headline score
Ranking (England)
—
No ranked results
Ofsted
Requires improvement
Graded 08/03/2022
Application demand
100%
1st preference success · Not oversubscribed
Attendance
96.3%
4.3% persistently absent
At a glance
Pupils on roll
348
Capacity used
Over capacity110%
315 places
GCSE rank (England)
—
KS2 rank (England)
—
Application demand
Primary entry · official council applications and offers
100%
1st preference success rate
39 of 39 families who put it first got an offer
42
Places offered
66
Total applications
1.6
Applications per place
| Preference (Sept 2025 entry) | Applications | Offers | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st preference | 39 | 39 | ● 100% |
| 2nd preference | 11 | 2 | ● 18% |
| 3rd preference | 7 | 0 | ● 0% |
| Later preferences (4th–5th) | 9 | 0 | ● 0% |
| Total | 66 | 41 | 62% |
1st preference success by year
Wakefield lets families list 5 preferences. 1 applications came from outside the council area (1 offered). Source: Department for Education, school-level applications and offers. Offers are made on each school's admissions criteria (e.g. siblings, distance, faith), so check the school's policy.
Details
- Type
- Academy sponsor led
- Phase
- Primary
- Age range
- 3–11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Sixth form
- No
- Nursery
- Has Nursery Classes
- Boarding
- No boarders
- Headteacher
- Joe Ayre
- Address
- Northfield Lane, South Kirkby, Pontefract, WF9 3LY
- Phone
- 01977651291
- Local authority
- Wakefield
- Ward / constituency
- South Elmsall & South Kirkby · Normanton and Hemsworth
- Area
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- URN
- 150309
Pupils
| Measure | School | LA | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free school meals | 23% | — | — |
| English as additional language | 3% | — | — |
| SEN support | 15% | — | — |
Local deprivation (IDACI quintile 4 of 5)
1 = least deprived area, 5 = most deprived. Context only.
Academy trust: ARK SCHOOLS
348 pupils · 315 places. Intake figures describe the school's community — they aren't good or bad.
Ofsted inspections
- 22
08 March 2022
Full graded inspection
Requires improvement overall effectivenessEarly years Good Personal development Good Quality of education Requires improvement Safeguarding effective Yes Behaviour and attitudes Good Leadership and management Requires improvement
Attendance
2024/2025 school year · 281 pupils
Attendance
96.3%
Share of sessions attended · England 94.5%
Overall absence
3.7%
Sessions missed, any reason · England 5.5%
Persistent absence
4.3%
Pupils missing 10%+ of school · England 14.6%
Severe absence
0.0%
Pupils missing 50%+ of school · England 2.3%
Unauthorised absence
1.2%
Absences the school didn't approve
Persistent absence by year
Source: Department for Education, pupil absence by school (pupils aged 5–15). Lower absence is better. England figures are approximate 2023/24 averages.
Primary results by subject (SATs)
Year 6 pupils meeting each standard, against England
Reading, writing & maths combined
Reading
Writing
Maths
Grammar, punctuation & spelling
Science
England average · Scaled scores run 80–120 (100 = expected standard).
Primary results over time
Expected standard (RWM) by year (2020 and 2021 exams were cancelled)
| Result | School | England (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Expected standard (RWM) | 83% | 61% |
| Higher standard | 27% | 8% |
House prices near the school
Typical sold prices (Land Registry) within 1 km, last 12 months.
Loading prices…
Key application dates
National deadlines in England. Apply through Wakefield council, not the school.
| Entry | Deadline | Offer day |
|---|---|---|
| Reception (primary) | 15 January | 16 April (or next working day) |
Source: Get Information About Schools and the DfE school and college performance tables (2023-2024); Oxbridge figures from the University of Cambridge's admissions by UCAS apply centre (Oxford doesn't publish per-school figures). Read the method.