Bradford Academy, Bradford

In its own words: "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Matthew 5:14 The centre of our vision is the above bible verse from the gospel of Matthew. We selected this bible verse to fit with the idea with of being a shining light in the community."

From the headteacher's welcome: "We are proud to serve over 1,600 children and young people from the age of 2 to 16. Every day, our staff work hard to give each child the best possible education and help them become successful, confident and caring young people. Everything we do is guided by our values of Responsibility, Respect and Resilience ."

The school runs after-school care.

In 2026, pupils at Bradford Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 35.2, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 42.6 in Bradford and 47 across England.

28% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 40% in Bradford and 47% in England.

That is up from 33.1 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.94: pupils made well below average progress compared with pupils nationally who started secondary school at the same level. Progress 8 was not published for 2026.

Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 30.8, against 41.8 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 11 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 24 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, Spanish and History.

For September 2026 entry, 161 families put Bradford Academy as their first choice and 389 named it as one of their preferences, for 207 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 5 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The nearest other state secondary schools to Bradford Academy are Bradford Forster Academy (0.4 miles, Inadequate, Attainment 8 37.7); Bronte Girls' Academy (0.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 47.9); Dixons City Academy (1 mile, Outstanding, Attainment 8 52.5); and Dixons Trinity Academy (1.3 miles, Outstanding, Attainment 8 52.5).

Each of them had higher 2026 results than Bradford Academy.

Bradford Academy is run by its own single-school academy trust.

42 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Bradford Academy (as of September 2025): 45% would recommend the school, 55% say their child is happy there and 15% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.

The strongest agreement was that the school has high expectations for their child (57%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (15%).

Of the 230 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 78% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 44% to a further education college, 2% to an apprenticeship and 1% into work.

Of the 51 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 39% went on to university or other higher education, 2% to apprenticeships and 26% into work. 4% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

49.8% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.

In 2026, 248 pupils (16%) received SEN support and 100 (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 social, emotional and mental health needs.

Bradford Academy has a resourced provision for autism, social, emotional and mental health needs and physical disability: 48 places, 21 pupils on roll.

The nearest railway station is Bradford Interchange Rail Station, about 1.1 miles away in a straight line.

7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Bowling Park, 190 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Bradford Academy stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In 2024/25, Bradford Academy issued 485 suspensions, 28.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 5 permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to Bradford Academy are Lower Fields Primary Academy (0.3 miles), Bowling Park Primary School (0.6 miles), Knowleswood Primary School (0.7 miles) and Newhall Park Primary School (0.8 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.