School Chooser

Summerfields Primary Academy

Primary · ages 3-11MixedAcademy214 pupils Free breakfast clubBarnsley
School Chooser Score
85
Well above
similar schools
Likely range 70 to 93, so it could be “above”
Out of 100. Better than 82% of the 50 schools most like it. Much the same over the last five years.
OfstedGoodLast Ofsted inspection, October 2023
Reached the expected level at 1188%England 63%
Attendance96.0%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families15%Far fewer than most schools
PlacesFull214 pupils, 210 places
Pupils per teacher27.4School workforce census

Summerfields Primary Academy is a converter academy in Barnsley for boys and girls aged 3 to 11. It has 214 pupils, 4 more than it has places for. About 14 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 85 out of 100. That puts it well above schools like it, ahead of 82% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.

Haigh Croft Summer Lane, Royston, Barnsley, S71 4SF01226 722480summerfieldsacademy.co.ukMrs Lisa Tabbner executive principalAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 25 October 2023, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Good
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Good
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Good
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Early years
Good
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

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

Reached the expected level at 1188%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level9%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score106.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score107.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 46%46%20172018: 57%57%20182019: 55%55%20192023: 73%73%20232024: 81%81%20242025: 88%88%2025
Since 2017: +42%Steady overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017BarnsleyEngland
Pupils tested323130293026
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths88%81%73%55%57%46%66%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths9%13%0%7%7%4%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score106.0107.0106.0104.0102.0104.0105.6105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score107.0109.0108.0102.0102.0103.0104.8104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score104.0107.0105.0104.0101.0105.0105.0105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard91%94%83%66%63%77%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard100%97%97%66%63%77%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)91%84%80%72%73%50%
Reading progressReading progress score+1.0-0.6-2.1+0.0
Maths progressMaths progress score+3.8-2.6-2.0-1.0
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged86%67%56%20%25%33%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged88%84%81%74%68%50%

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.

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. 2 of the 3 gaps are 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
86%88%
Gap 2 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
87%88%
Gap 1 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%9%
Gap 9 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.

Nearly full208 pupils for 210 places, 2024/25
99% full

Fewer than one place in twenty is empty, so in most years more families apply than there are places. Living close by, or already having a child here, makes a real difference. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Barnsley council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

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 roll214Census January 2026
Places210102% full
Pupils from low-income families15%15% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English2%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support10%21 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan5%10 pupils with a plan
Average class size30.67 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils43%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)13%£43,400 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls117 / 97
White British pupils92%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 29.7 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 31.3 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (8), language and communications needs (7), Moderate learning difficulty (5), emotional and mental health (5), Specific learning difficulty (5), Other difficulty or disability (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll214210213212212211
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals15%18%17%19%19%15%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language2%2%2%3%3%2%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support9%9%15%11%3%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans4%4%2%1%1%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 96.0% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance96.0%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school7.1%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils1.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.3%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence4.0%4.9%5.1%6.7%2.2%3.8%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence2.7%3.3%3.3%5.0%1.6%2.3%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.3%1.6%1.8%1.7%0.6%1.5%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence7.1%9.2%12.0%18.5%4.3%5.0%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate1.02.80.00.00.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers7.8full-time equivalent, 8 people
Pupils per teacher27.4Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants9.3full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£51,270
Teachers who left in the year0%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher0.92024/25

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£5,938England £7,128. Total £1.2m
Income per pupil£6,557England £7,587. Total £1.4m
Spent on teachers per pupil£2,643England £3,405
Money in reserve27%A lot put by: £376k, £1,792 per pupil. England 9%
Money in against money out+£130kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£5,938spent 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 m13812 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate85 per 1,000 people6% lower than the England average
Nearest bus stop120 mSummer Lane/Applehaigh View, 9 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
Lift MeadsteadAcademy530 m215No overall grade 202561Compare
Parkside Primary AcademyAcademy910 m225Good 202473Compare
Royston St John Baptist CE PrimaryAcademy0.7 miles162Good 202242Compare
Athersley North Primary SchoolCouncil1.4 miles290Report card 20264Compare
Carlton Primary AcademyAcademy1.4 miles317Good 202359Compare
Laithes Primary SchoolAcademy1.6 miles308Report card 202664Compare
Holy Trinity Catholic and Church of England SchoolAcademy1.7 miles1,108No overall grade 20256Compare
Mapplewell Primary SchoolAcademy1.7 miles343Good 202488Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Summerfields Primary Academy 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.

Beats82%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the top quarter of its group. Its score of 85 is 19 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 10 · middle 66 · highest 98100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 85 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 85% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 70 to 93. That range is wide enough that the school could sit in the next band, so take the band as a rough guide rather than a verdict. 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%above
+0.15
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 32 pupils
Ofsted inspection20%in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 2.9 years old
Progress pupils make20%above
+0.10
DfE progress measure; 32 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%above
+0.07
results and attendance rising year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%above
+0.08
2024/25; 184 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%well above
+0.12
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 32 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 Summerfields Primary Academy a good school?

Yes, going by the figures. Summerfields Primary Academy scores 85 out of 100. That is well above schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 82% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 70 to 93, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

What is Summerfields Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Summerfields Primary Academy good at its last full inspection on 25 October 2023.

How good are Summerfields Primary Academy's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 88% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 9% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does Summerfields Primary Academy have?

214 pupils aged 3 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 210 places, so it is 102% full.

Is Summerfields Primary Academy oversubscribed?

Often. Fewer than one place in twenty was empty in 2024/25, so popular year groups fill up.

What is attendance like at Summerfields Primary Academy?

Pupils were in school 96.0% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 7% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Summerfields Primary Academy?

The average class had 30.6 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 43% of classes had more than 30 pupils.

Does Summerfields Primary Academy have a breakfast club?

Yes. It is on the government's free breakfast club programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school.

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

Contact and details

Address
Haigh Croft Summer Lane, Royston, Barnsley, S71 4SF
Telephone
01226 722480
Website
www.summerfieldsacademy.co.uk
Executive Principal
Mrs Lisa Tabbner
Free breakfast club
Yes: on the government's programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school (listed since September 2026).
Type of school
Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 3-11
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
Pioneer Academies Community Trust (Pact) (4 schools)
Local authority
Barnsley
Ward
Royston
Constituency
Barnsley North
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 December 2012 (academy converter)
URN
139085 · LAESTAB 3702125 · UKPRN 10039709
Formerly
Royston Summer Fields Primary School

Where these figures come from