SCHOOL PROFILE

Birchfields Primary School

Primary Community school URN 130380
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 720 Published school capacity
Capacity used 82.2% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 3 – 11 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

1 October 2024
Latest published outcome Not judged
OEIF
Quality of education Good
Behaviour & attitudes Outstanding
Personal development Good
Leadership & management Good
INSPECTION HISTORY

Previous Ofsted activity

14 March 2023
Ungraded inspection School remains Good (Concerns) - S5 Next
Published 12 September 2023
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Community school
Phase Primary
Gender Mixed
Religious character Does not apply
Local authority Manchester
Trust Not applicable
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 592 585 full-time · 7 part-time
Female pupils 277 46.8% of pupils
Male pupils 315 53.2% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

58.3%
33.5 pts above England
School 58.3%
Manchester 46.4%
North West 28.5%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

83.3%
63.0 pts above England
School 83.3%
Manchester 42.0%
North West 18.1%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

2.5%
1.5 pts above England
School 2.5%
Manchester 1.9%
North West 0.8%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

Pakistani
50.3%
298
Bangladeshi
21.6%
128
Any other ethnic group
9.3%
55
Any other Asian background
5.9%
35
African
4.6%
27
Indian
2.4%
14
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 19.3% 114 of 592 pupils
1.6 pts below England England: 20.8%
School 19.3%
Manchester 23.4%
North West 22.1%
England 20.8%
SEN support 14.5% 86 pupils
England 14.8% 0.3 pts below
EHC plans 4.7% 28 pupils
England 6.0% 1.3 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Speech, language & communication 44
No specialist assessment yet 35
Social, emotional & mental health 17
Other difficulty or disability 4
Hearing impairment 3
Specific learning difficulty 3

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 2 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading, writing & maths

49.0% 11.4 pts below England
School 49.0%
Manchester 57.4%
North West 59.1%
England 60.4%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading

73.0%

0.8 pts below England

School 73.0%
Manchester 71.2%
North West 73.2%
England 73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Writing

63.0%

7.3 pts below England

School 63.0%
Manchester 66.0%
North West 69.2%
England 70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Maths

65.0%

7.0 pts below England

School 65.0%
Manchester 70.8%
North West 71.7%
England 72.0%
School results show the percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard. Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages and are not pupil-weighted official attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

6.32%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

0.11 pts higher than England
School 6.32%
Manchester 6.82%
North West 6.25%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

20.82%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

5.00 pts higher than England
School 20.82%
Manchester 18.60%
North West 15.89%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

1.12%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

0.69 pts lower than England
School 1.12%
Manchester 2.21%
North West 1.75%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open primary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

82.2% 6.0 pts below England
Birchfields Primary School
82.2%
Manchester
91.3%
North West
90.6%
England
88.2%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information