Primary school in Castleford, Wakefield
Airedale Infant Academy
Poplar Avenue, Airedale, Castleford, WF10 3QJ
Ofsted
Standards maintained at the last ungraded inspection, on 4 June 2025.
Inspections since September 2024 do not give an overall grade, so there is no one-word judgement to report. The full report sets out what inspectors found.
Pupils
- Pupils on roll
- 206
- Places
- 180
- How full
- Full — 206 pupils against 180 places
- Girls / boys
- 101 / 105
- Overall absence
- 7%
- Persistently absent
- 23%
primary schools average 5.2%
primary schools average 12.8% — pupils missing 10% or more of sessions
- Free school meals, last 6 years
- 28%
- English as an additional language
- 7%
- With an EHC plan
- 1%
- On SEN support
- 12%
England 25.7%
England 18.7%
England 3.5%
England 15%
The neighbourhood around the school
Census 2021 figures for Wakefield 003B, the statistical neighbourhood the school sits in — roughly 1,500 residents. It describes the area, not the pupils, who may travel in from further away.
- Adults with a degree
- 24%
- Adults with no qualifications
- 21%
- Households owning their home
- 89%
- Households in social housing
- 1%
- Households with no car
- 10%
- Adults economically inactive
- 37%
England 33.8%
England 18.3%
England 62.7%
England 17%
England 21.9%
England 39.9%
School details
- Type
- Academy converter
- Phase
- Primary
- Ages
- Ages 3–7
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Sixth form
- No
- Nursery
- Yes
- Boarding
- Day school
- Trust
- CASTLEFORD ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Headteacher: Kirsten Mckechnie
- Local authority
- Wakefield
- Ward
- Airedale and Ferry Fryston
- Constituency
- Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley
- URN
- 141522
The unique reference number used in all official school data.
Nearest primary schools
| School | Ofsted | Expected standard | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Townville AcademyAcademy sponsor led | Requires improvement 2023 | — | 0 mi |
| Airedale Junior AcademyAcademy sponsor led | Good 2023 | 62% | 0 mi |
| Fairburn View Primary School, CastlefordCommunity school | Good 2023 | 30% | 0.4 mi |
| Oyster Park Primary AcademyAcademy sponsor led | No grade | 43% | 0.6 mi |
| Glasshoughton Infant AcademyAcademy converter | Good 2023 | — | 0.9 mi |
| Castleford Park Junior AcademyAcademy converter | Good 2024 | 61% | 1.1 mi |
| St Joseph's Catholic Primary School CastlefordAcademy converter | No grade | 52% | 1.2 mi |
| Castleford Wheldon Infant School and NurseryCommunity school | No grade | — | 1.3 mi |
Where these figures come from
- School details, address and pupil numbers — Get Information About Schools, the DfE register, as at 14 August 2026.
- Exam results — DfE performance tables, 2024/25.
- Free school meals, EAL and SEN — school census, 2024/25.
- Ofsted — Ofsted management information, latest inspections as at 30 June 2026.
- Neighbourhood figures — ONS Census 2021, lower layer super output area.
All published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. If something here looks wrong, the school's own website is the authority on admissions and open days.