Castleford Academy
Secondary · Academy converter · Mixed · Wakefield
Ferrybridge Road, Castleford, WF10 4JQ
69
headline score
Ranking (England)
—
No ranked results
Ofsted
Not judged
Graded 28/01/2025
Application demand
88%
1st preference success · Oversubscribed
Attendance
91.3%
23.5% persistently absent
At a glance
Pupils on roll
1,480
Capacity used
Nearly full99%
1,500 places
GCSE rank (England)
—
KS2 rank (England)
—
Application demand
Secondary entry · official council applications and offers
88%
1st preference success rate
278 of 316 families who put it first got an offer
279
Places offered
476
Total applications
1.7
Applications per place
| Preference (Sept 2025 entry) | Applications | Offers | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st preference | 316 | 278 | ● 88% |
| 2nd preference | 96 | 1 | ● 1% |
| 3rd preference | 35 | 0 | ● 0% |
| Later preferences (4th–5th) | 29 | 0 | ● 0% |
| Total | 476 | 279 | 59% |
1st preference success by year
Wakefield lets families list 5 preferences. 13 applications came from outside the council area (0 offered). Source: Department for Education, school-level applications and offers. Offers are made on each school's admissions criteria (e.g. siblings, distance, faith), so check the school's policy.
Details
- Type
- Academy converter
- Phase
- Secondary
- Age range
- 11–16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sixth form
- No
- Boarding
- No boarders
- Headteacher
- Wesley Bush
- Address
- Ferrybridge Road, Castleford, WF10 4JQ
- Phone
- 01977605060
- Local authority
- Wakefield
- Ward / constituency
- Castleford Central & Glasshoughton · Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley
- Area
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- URN
- 136633
Pupils
| Measure | School | LA | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free school meals | 29% | — | — |
| English as additional language | 5% | — | — |
| SEN support | 11% | — | — |
Local deprivation (IDACI quintile 4 of 5)
1 = least deprived area, 5 = most deprived. Context only.
Academy trust: CASTLEFORD ACADEMY TRUST
1,480 pupils · 1,500 places. Intake figures describe the school's community — they aren't good or bad.
Ofsted inspections
- 25
28 January 2025
Full graded inspection
Not judged overall effectivenessPersonal development Outstanding Quality of education Good Safeguarding effective Yes Behaviour and attitudes Good Leadership and management Good
Attendance
2024/2025 school year · 1,526 pupils
Attendance
91.3%
Share of sessions attended · England 91.1%
Overall absence
8.7%
Sessions missed, any reason · England 8.9%
Persistent absence
23.5%
Pupils missing 10%+ of school · England 26.7%
Severe absence
6.0%
Pupils missing 50%+ of school · England 2.3%
Unauthorised absence
3.5%
Absences the school didn't approve
Persistent absence by year
Source: Department for Education, pupil absence by school (pupils aged 5–15). Lower absence is better. England figures are approximate 2023/24 averages.
GCSE results
| Measure | School | LA | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 score | 48.6 | — | — |
| Progress 8 score | 0.41 | — | 0.00 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 51% | — | — |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 67% | — | — |
| EBacc average point score | 4.16 | — | — |
Progress 8 band
GCSE results over time
Attainment 8 by year (2020 and 2021 exams were cancelled)
| Result | School | England (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 | 48.5 | 46 |
| Grade 5+ English & maths | 50.5% | 46% |
| Grade 4+ English & maths | 66.8% | 65% |
| Entering EBacc | 18% | 40% |
| EBacc average point score | 4.08 | 4.1 |
| Pupils in cohort | 295 | — |
How different pupils progress (GCSE, 2023/2024)
Progress 8 by group. 0 is the national average; above 0 means pupils do better than similar children elsewhere.
Results by subject
Official DfE exam results for summer 2025. Green, amber and red compare against typical results in England; subjects with fewer than 5 entries aren't rated.
GCSE
Grade 4 is a standard pass, 5 a strong pass, 7 equals the old A.
| Subject | Entries | Grade 7+ | Grade 5+ | Grade 4+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 294 | 30% | 57% | 72% | |
| English Language | 294 | 21% | 56% | 68% | |
| English Literature | 292 | 12% | 54% | 68% | |
| Combined Science | 260 | 11% | 47% | 65% | |
| History | 160 | 25% | 56% | 71% | |
| Geography | 88 | 9% | 43% | 52% | |
| Art and Design | 75 | 19% | 64% | 85% | |
| French | 68 | 28% | 74% | 87% | |
| Physical Education | 68 | 49% | 88% | 99% | |
| Food Preparation & Nutrition | 58 | 24% | 72% | 91% | |
| Drama | 41 | 5% | 37% | 61% | |
| Biology | 34 | 59% | 91% | 91% |
House prices near the school
Typical sold prices (Land Registry) within 1 km, last 12 months.
Loading prices…
Key application dates
National deadlines in England. Apply through Wakefield council, not the school.
| Entry | Deadline | Offer day |
|---|---|---|
| Year 7 (secondary) | 31 October | 1 March (or next working day) |
Admissions policy: Non-selective. Check the school's own admissions rules on its website.
Source: Get Information About Schools and the DfE school and college performance tables (2023-2024); Oxbridge figures from the University of Cambridge's admissions by UCAS apply centre (Oxford doesn't publish per-school figures). Read the method.