Idle CofE Primary School, Bradford
Idle CofE Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 11 in Bradford. It has a Church of England religious character. It was rated Outstanding at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in February 2014. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in January 2025 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 47th-highest of the 110 schools in Bradford with published results, and 8,234th of 14,452 across England. It was 97% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Outstanding (2014)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Better than England average
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Bradford (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Idle CofE Primary School in detail
Results
In 2025, 78% of Year 6 pupils at Idle CofE Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 72% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 74% and 73% in Bradford and 77% and 75% across England.
Results were similar in 2024 (80% in reading, 70% in maths).
Getting a place at Idle CofE Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 37 families put Idle CofE Primary School as their first choice and 164 named it as one of their preferences, for 46 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Idle CofE Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Idle CofE Primary School are Thackley Primary School (0.1 miles, Good, 88% reading, 95% maths); Thorpe Primary (0.5 miles, Good, 83% reading, 83% maths); St Anthony's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy (0.7 miles, 94% reading, 94% maths); and Co-op Academy Parkland (0.9 miles, Requires improvement, 81% reading, 73% maths).
Each of them had higher 2025 results than Idle CofE Primary School.
Thackley Primary SchoolThorpe PrimarySt Anthony's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary AcademyCo-op Academy Parkland
What parents say
127 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Idle CofE Primary School (as of September 2025): 69% would recommend the school, 79% say their child is happy there and 45% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (91%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (45%).
Who goes there
7.2% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 6.4% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (78%), Mixed (9%) and Asian (7%).
In 2026, 29 pupils (7.5%) received SEN support and 17 (4.4%) 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.
Staffing
Idle CofE Primary School had 17 teachers in 2026, one for every 24 pupils: fewer teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Baildon Rail Station, about 1 mile away in a straight line.
14 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Kingston Road (opposite), 130 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 170 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and burglary. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Bradford (404).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Idle CofE Primary School issued 2 suspensions, 0.5 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; DfE school workforce census; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from February 2014, 12 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's January 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Idle Primary creates a caring environment where pupils feel supported and develop positive values. The school has excellent behaviour and attendance, with strong support for vulnerable pupils. Reading is prioritised well, with a structured phonics programme and access to high-quality books from the start.
Key Strengths
- Strong focus on reading with a well-established phonics programme and introduction to high-quality books from the start
- Good behaviour management and attendance, with effective support for vulnerable pupils and their families
- Pupils develop strong values including inclusion, community, pride and resilience with good awareness of rights and responsibilities
Areas for Improvement
- Lack of clarity about the precise knowledge pupils should learn in some subjects and early years, making it difficult for teachers to teach effectively
- Gaps in teacher subject knowledge in newer curriculum areas, limiting their ability to adapt lessons and support pupils with special needs
- Inconsistent curriculum sequencing means pupils cannot build knowledge progressively in all subjects
- Variable success in parent engagement, leaving some parents worried about recent changes
Safeguarding
The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
Extracurricular Activities
Sport, music, cooking, play leaders, school councillors, reading buddies, worship leaders
Idle CofE Primary School is a caring and supportive school where pupils' behaviour is calm and positive, but the quality of education requires improvement due to inconsistencies in curriculum delivery and gaps in teacher subject knowledge.
At a Glance
7.2%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
127 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has remained stable at around 78% (2024 to 2025). Maths has remained stable at around 72% (2024 to 2025). Writing has remained stable at around 78% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
27.8
Avg class size
26.7
Infant (KS1)
28.6
KS2
14
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Idle CofE Primary School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Idle CofE Primary School.
- The ArkAt the school · Not yet graded
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Idle CofE Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Idle CofE Primary School is in Bradford; for families living there:
- Bradford's school travel policy: Home to school travel and transport policy for children of compulsory school age
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 18
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 3
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 18 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 16 slight.
3 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot.
4 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 Bradford is 30 (the median across 233 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 Idle CofE Primary School
Will you get a place at Idle CofE Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Idle CofE Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Idle CofE Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Idle CofE Primary School.
- Bradford publishes last distance offered figures, but none for Idle CofE Primary School that we hold, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Idle CofE Primary School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Bradford 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
97%
Near capacity
408 pupils
420 places
12 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Bradford
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Bradford
Across Bradford council
Places available
7,475
Applications
6,301
Got 1st preference
92.3%
Got preferred school
98.6%
All primary applications across Bradford council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(6)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
29
SEN Support
17
EHC Plans
11.8%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
389
Total Pupils
201
Boys
188
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
17
Teachers
22.9:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£46,433
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£4,975
Per pupil
£2215k
Total funding
£38k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
3.6%
Overall absence
5.0%
Persistent absence
360
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
Idle CofE Primary School
Questions parents ask about Idle CofE Primary School
What are SATs results like at Idle CofE Primary School?
Of the pupils at Idle CofE Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 78% reached the expected standard in reading and 72% did so in maths.
What is Idle CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Idle CofE Primary School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in January 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in February 2014, it was rated Outstanding.
What is the catchment area for Idle CofE Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Idle CofE Primary School is oversubscribed, Bradford allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Idle CofE Primary School?
Idle CofE Primary School was close to full in 2025, at 97% of its capacity.
How big are the classes at Idle CofE Primary School?
Classes at Idle CofE Primary School average 27.8 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Idle CofE Primary School?
Idle CofE Primary School has around 389 pupils on roll. 7% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Idle CofE Primary School?
3.6% of sessions were missed at Idle CofE Primary School in 2024/25. 5% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Idle CofE Primary School?
Apply through Bradford's coordinated admissions process, naming Idle CofE 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 Idle CofE Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: The Ark (registered, not yet graded). The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
How many road collisions happen near Idle CofE Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 18 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 16 slight. 3 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot. 4 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 Bradford is 30 (the median across 233 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Idle CofE Primary School?
Idle CofE Primary School is at Boothroyd Drive, Idle, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD10 8LU.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)