Barley Croft Primary School, Leicester
Barley Croft Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in Leicester. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in May 2019. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in December 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 124th-highest of the 138 schools in Leicester with published results, and 12,528th of 14,452 across England. It was 99% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2019)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Leicester (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Barley Croft Primary School in detail
Barley Croft Primary School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "This site offers you a glimpse into life at Barley Croft Primary School where we 'belong, believe, become'. Barley Croft is a thriving school where the Governors and staff are dedicated to providing a high standard of education for all of our pupils."
The school runs a breakfast club from 8:00am and after-school care.
Headteacher's welcome (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 64% of Year 6 pupils at Barley Croft Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 60% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 74% and 75% in Leicester and 77% and 75% across England.
Results fell from 68% in reading and 66% in maths in 2024.
Getting a place at Barley Croft Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 36 families put Barley Croft Primary School as their first choice and 53 named it as one of their preferences, for 36 places offered. That is one first choice for every place. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Barley Croft Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Barley Croft Primary School are Buswells Lodge Primary School (0.4 miles); Alderman Richard Hallam Primary School (0.6 miles, Good, 67% reading, 74% maths); Woodstock Primary Academy (0.7 miles, Requires improvement, 69% reading, 65% maths); and Wolsey House Primary School (0.8 miles, Good, 80% reading, 71% maths).
Each of them had higher 2025 results than Barley Croft Primary School.
Buswells Lodge Primary SchoolAlderman Richard Hallam Primary SchoolWoodstock Primary AcademyWolsey House Primary School
Who goes there
45.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 59.9% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are Black (36%), White British (30%) and Asian (13%).
In 2026, 60 pupils (18.5%) received SEN support and 21 (6.5%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is speech, language and communication needs.
Barley Croft Primary School has a SEN unit for speech, language and communication needs: 15 places, 10 pupils on roll.
Getting there
The nearest tram or metro stop is Leicester North (Great Central Railway), about 1.2 miles away in a straight line.
8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Baxters Close (opposite), 160 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Barley Croft Primary School stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Barley Croft Primary School issued 20 suspensions, 6 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Barley Croft Primary School are Babington Academy (0.2 miles); Beaumont Leys School (0.3 miles); English Martyrs' Catholic School, A Voluntary Academy (0.5 miles); and Brook Mead Academy (1 mile).
Babington AcademyBeaumont Leys SchoolEnglish Martyrs' Catholic School, A Voluntary AcademyBrook Mead Academy
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Every family who put it first was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance did not limit places that year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from May 2019, 7 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: Standards have been maintained.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's December 2024 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Barley Croft is a welcoming, inclusive school where children from many different backgrounds learn together happily. Teachers use engaging learning projects and create a classroom environment where pupils think hard and develop strong communication skills. The school prioritises reading and has excellent support for younger learners, including exciting outdoor activities in the early years.
Key Strengths
- Strong reading programme with well-trained staff and effective phonics teaching
- Excellent early years provision with ambitious, exciting curriculum including outdoor learning
- Effective pastoral team supporting vulnerable pupils and families
- Clear focus on British values and preparing pupils for modern Britain
- Well-established school values and 'learning powers' that pupils understand and apply
Areas for Improvement
- Some teachers do not interpret curriculum guidance consistently, meaning some pupils miss important knowledge
- Support for pupils with SEND in mainstream classes is not always well-adapted to their needs
- Subject leaders need better skills to identify where staff need support implementing the curriculum
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with clear systems in place and a strong culture where pupils feel safe and know adults will listen to their concerns.
Extracurricular Activities
Golf club, dance club, university aspirations club, breakfast club
Barley Croft Primary School has maintained its good standards since the previous inspection. The school is a happy, inclusive community where pupils from diverse backgrounds thrive and make strong progress.
At a Glance
45.4%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
SEN unit: Speech and language
SEN Provision
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has declined from 68% to 64% (2024 to 2025). Maths has declined from 66% to 60% (2024 to 2025). Writing has improved from 66% to 70% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
24.2
Avg class size
23.3
Infant (KS1)
29.2
KS2
11
Total classes
1 class with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Social & online
Keep up with Barley Croft Primary School
Before and after school care
Barley Croft Primary School is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school. Source: Free breakfast clubs: schools on the programme, Department for Education Free breakfast clubs in Leicester
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Barley Croft Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Barley Croft Primary School is in Leicester; for families living there:
Apply to Leicester for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 8
- Fatal
- 1
- Serious
- 1
- Children hurt
- 2
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 8 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 1 serious and 6 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot.
2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Leicester is 24.5 (the median across 142 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Barley Croft Primary School
Will you get a place at Barley Croft Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Barley Croft Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Barley Croft Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Barley Croft Primary School.
- Leicester publishes last distance offered figures, but none for Barley Croft Primary School that we hold, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Barley Croft Primary School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Leicester got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
99%
Near capacity
312 pupils
315 places
3 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Leicester
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Leicester
Across Leicester council
Places available
4,828
Applications
3,626
Got 1st preference
96.8%
Got preferred school
99.3%
All primary applications across Leicester council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(10)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
60
SEN Support
21
EHC Plans
25.0%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Barley Croft Primary School has a SEN unit for speech, language and communication needs: 15 places, 10 pupils on roll.
Source: GIAS, Department for Education.
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
324
Total Pupils
173
Boys
151
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
19
Teachers
17.1:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£52,751
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,344
Per pupil
£2300k
Total funding
£192k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.3%
Overall absence
12.1%
Persistent absence
290
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Questions parents ask about Barley Croft Primary School
What are SATs results like at Barley Croft Primary School?
Of the pupils at Barley Croft Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 64% reached the expected standard in reading and 60% did so in maths.
What is Barley Croft Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Barley Croft Primary School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in December 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in May 2019, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Barley Croft Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Barley Croft Primary School is oversubscribed, Leicester allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Barley Croft Primary School?
Barley Croft Primary School was close to full in 2025, at 99% of its capacity.
How big are the classes at Barley Croft Primary School?
Classes at Barley Croft Primary School average 24.2 pupils (2025/26). 1 class has more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Barley Croft Primary School?
Barley Croft Primary School has around 324 pupils on roll. 45% are eligible for free school meals.
Does Barley Croft Primary School have specialist SEN provision?
Barley Croft Primary School has a SEN unit for speech, language and communication needs: 15 places, 10 pupils on roll.
What is attendance like at Barley Croft Primary School?
5.3% of sessions were missed at Barley Croft Primary School in 2024/25. 12.1% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Barley Croft Primary School?
Apply through Leicester's coordinated admissions process, naming Barley Croft Primary School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
Does Barley Croft Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Barley Croft Primary School is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school.
How many road collisions happen near Barley Croft Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 8 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 1 serious and 6 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot. 2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Leicester is 24.5 (the median across 142 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Barley Croft Primary School?
Barley Croft Primary School is at Malham Close, Beaumont Leys, Leicester, Leicestershire, LE4 0UT.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)