School Chooser

Poppleton Road Primary School

Primary · ages 3-11MixedAcademy404 pupilsNurseryYork
School Chooser Score
20
Below
similar schools
Likely range 11 to 34
Out of 100. Better than 33% of the 50 schools most like it.
OfstedAs expected teachingOfsted report card, April 2026
Reached the expected level at 1164%England 63%
Attendance94.4%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families28%About the same as most schools in England
Places42 spare404 pupils, 446 places
Pupils per teacher23.6School workforce census

Poppleton Road Primary School is a converter academy in York for boys and girls aged 3 to 11. It has 404 pupils and room for 446. About 28 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, about the same as most schools in England. We give it 20 out of 100. That puts it below schools like it, ahead of 33% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted visited in April 2026 and gave it a report card, which is below.

Poppleton Road, York, YO26 4UP01904 806522poppletonroadprimary.co.ukMrs Ellie Dawson headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted visited on 28 April 2026. Instead of one overall word, it now gives a grade for each part of school life. Read the full report on Ofsted's website.

TeachingOfsted calls this “curriculum and teaching”
As expected
Achievement
As expected
Behaviour and attendanceOfsted calls this “attendance and behaviour”
Needs attention
Support for every childOfsted calls this “inclusion”
As expected
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development and wellbeing”
As expected
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and governance”
Needs attention
Early years
As expected
SafeguardingAre pupils kept safe?
Pupils are kept safe
Met
Ofsted's scale:ExceptionalStrong standardExpected standardNeeds attentionUrgent improvement

Ofsted says these new grades can't be lined up against the old one-word grades.

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

59 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England.

Reached the expected level at 1164%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level12%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score106.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score104.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 60%60%20172018: 68%68%20182019: 72%72%20192023: 68%68%20232024: 53%53%20242025: 64%64%2025
Since 2017: +4%
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023†2019†2018†2017†YorkEngland
Pupils tested595860605752
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths64%53%68%72%68%60%62%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths12%9%2%7%16%10%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score106.0105.0106.0104.0105.0105.0105.8105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score104.0105.0104.0104.0104.0104.0104.6104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score105.0105.0105.0105.0106.0106.0104.9105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard76%72%77%75%81%67%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard71%71%78%78%77%71%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)81%66%83%85%84%88%
Reading progressReading progress score-0.1+0.1+0.3-0.1
Maths progressMaths progress score-1.1-0.7-0.3-1.6
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged33%8%53%58%60%36%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged75%65%73%78%70%66%

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

† These results are for Poppleton Road Primary School, the school this one replaced in September 2023. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. None of the gaps is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At the end of primary school, 2025

Reached the expected level at 11Low-income pupils vs other pupils
33%75%
Gap 42 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
61%69%
Gap 8 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Pupils learning English vs all pupils
33%64%
Gap 31 ptsEngland 4 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%12%
Gap 12 ptsEngland 5 pts
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Catchment area

York council has drawn an official catchment area for this school. You can see it on the map below; it covers about 0.9 square kilometres. Living inside it moves your child up the queue when there are more applicants than places. It doesn't guarantee a place: the council's admissions rules decide the order.

Set your home postcode at the top of the page to see whether you live inside it.

A few spare places396 pupils for 420 places, 2024/25
94% full

About 24 places were empty, so most families who apply get in, though a popular year group can still fill up.

Will my child get a place?

In 2026 every child who applied got a place, so how far away you live didn't matter. That could change if the school gets more popular.

We measure in a straight line from the middle of your postcode to the school. The council measures its own way, and the cut-off changes every year. Use this as a rough guide, and read the council's admissions booklet before you apply.

How places were given out for September 2026. Every child who applied got a place (51 offers for 60 places).

EntryPlacesGot a placeHow far the last child livedSource
2026 Primary6051all offeredLA
2025 Primary6053all offeredLA
2024 Primary6052all offeredLA

What a home inside the catchment costs

Typical sale price inside the catchment£275,000half sold for £221k to £350k
Homes sold105December 2023 to December 2025, Land Registry
Compared with the district-11%a typical home in the district sells for £307,500

Every home sold inside the council's catchment area, of any type, from HM Land Registry records. If homes here cost more than the district average, that is the price people pay to live close enough to get in.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll404Census January 2026
Places44691% full
Pupils from low-income families28%28% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English15%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support15%61 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan4%17 pupils with a plan
Average class size26.915 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils7%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)27%£161,200 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls205 / 199
White British pupils81%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 26.3 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 27.6 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (25), emotional and mental health (24), Autistic spectrum disorder (8), Moderate learning difficulty (6), Specific learning difficulty (6), Other difficulty or disability (3).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024
Pupils on roll404391397
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals28%25%26%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language15%14%14%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support12%13%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans4%3%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 94.4% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance94.4%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school17.0%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils13.32024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.3%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/23†2021/22†2020/21†2018/19†England
Sessions missedOverall absence5.7%5.4%5.6%6.7%5.2%4.2%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.4%4.0%4.5%5.5%4.5%3.2%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.3%1.4%1.1%1.2%0.7%1.0%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence17.0%16.3%14.8%18.6%15.3%8.8%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate13.35.8
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00

† These attendance figures are for Poppleton Road Primary School, the school this one replaced in September 2023. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers17.1full-time equivalent, 21 people
Pupils per teacher23.6Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants15.7full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£49,832
Teachers who left in the year16%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher1.82024/25

Money

From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£5,977England £7,128. Total £2.3m
Income per pupil£6,122England £7,587. Total £2.4m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,015England £3,405
Money in reserve-6%In the red: -£142k, -£362 per pupil. England 9%
Money in against money out+£57kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£5,977spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m25012 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate122 per 1,000 people34% higher than the England average
Typical house price£307,500York
Nearest bus stop70 mSeldon Road, 16 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Carr Junior SchoolAcademy790 m232Good 202345Compare
Saint Barnabas Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary SchoolChurch of England870 m76No overall grade 20252Compare
Acomb Primary SchoolAcademy0.6 miles312Outstanding 202386Compare
Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Catholic Primary School - a Catholic Voluntary AcademyAcademy0.8 miles415Good 202462Compare
St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary SchoolChurch of England0.8 miles168Good 202352Compare
Hob Moor Community Primary AcademyAcademy0.9 miles243Good 202210Compare
Clifton Green Primary SchoolCouncil1.1 miles372Good 20229Compare
Scarcroft Primary SchoolAcademy1.2 miles347Good 202285Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Poppleton Road Primary School with the 49 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 49 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats33%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the lower half of its group. Its score of 20 is 8 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 2 · middle 28 · highest 92100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 20 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 20% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 11 to 34. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years25%in line
-0.03
2025 and 2024 results; 59 pupils
Ofsted inspection20%well below
-0.32
Ofsted report card, 0.4 years old
Progress pupils make20%in line
-0.01
Contextualised attainment (no DfE progress measure available); 59 pupils
Direction of travel over five years0%no data
Attendance and behaviour10%below
-0.05
2024/25; 358 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%in line
0.00
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 59 pupils
What parents say0%no data

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is Poppleton Road Primary School a good school?

The figures are weak. Poppleton Road Primary School scores 20 out of 100. That is below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 33% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 11 to 34, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

What is Poppleton Road Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted no longer gives schools one overall grade. When it visited on 28 April 2026 it rated teaching as as expected, achievement as as expected, behaviour and attendance as needs attention, leadership as needs attention.

How good are Poppleton Road Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 64% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 12% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does Poppleton Road Primary School have?

404 pupils aged 3 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 446 places, so it is 91% full.

Is Poppleton Road Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 24 places were empty in 2024/25 (6% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Poppleton Road Primary School?

Pupils were in school 94.4% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 17% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Poppleton Road Primary School?

The average class had 26.9 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 7% of classes had more than 30 pupils.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Poppleton Road, York, YO26 4UP
Telephone
01904 806522
Website
www.poppletonroadprimary.co.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Ellie Dawson
Type of school
Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 3-11, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
Pathfinder Multi Academy Trust (20 schools)
Local authority
York
Ward
Holgate
Constituency
York Central
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 September 2023 (academy converter)
URN
149648 · LAESTAB 8162014 · UKPRN 10092163
Formerly
Poppleton Road Primary School

Where these figures come from