The School is now closed for the holidays and will re-open on Wednesday 2nd September 2026
If you have a safeguarding concern about a child or need any support, please contact Wakefield Social Care on 03458 503503
During the summer holiday period, emails sent to the school mailbox will not be monitored. Messages sent during this period will not be seen until staff return after the summer break.
Please note that Subject Access Requests (SARs) and Freedom of Information Requests (FOI) submitted during the summer holiday period will not be reviewed or acknowledged until the relevant school staff return and normal operations resume.
Letter to the Community of English Martyrs: Catholic School Inspection Report
A letter from the Trust CEO to the Community of English Martyrs Catholic Primary School regarding our recent Catholic School Inspection Report can be found here:
Letter to the Community of English Martyrs: Catholic School Inspection Report
A copy of the report can be found here:
School places available for immediate start, please contact the school office for more information.
As part of our English Martyr Day 2024 celebrations we launched our new Mission Statement on Friday 3rd May. See our New Mission Launch 2024 page to read more.
First Direct Visit – Money Facts Award
We have recently been lucky enough to have money workshops in school delivered by Mrs Halloran and her colleagues. Mrs Spencer, Mrs Kerrigan, Mrs Dunning and six of our children were lucky enough to visit the First Direct/HSBC offices this week to receive our school Money Facts Award.
After an exciting tour around the huge offices, the children played in First Direct’s very own games room. We received the award from the CEO of First Direct, a very special occasion indeed.
Many thanks to Mrs Halloran and her team for this wonderful experience and for bringing Money Facts to English Martyrs!
Our Mission Statement
At English Martyrs, the Catholic Faith is central to and permeates all aspects of school life.
Through the virtues of love, hope, temperance, practical wisdom, solidarity, patience and courage, faithfulness, justice, a caring environment is fostered where children and adults know the virtues in their heart and show them through their words and actions.
Children are encouraged and enabled to fulfil their own potential, building their self-confidence and self-esteem, and equipping them with the knowledge and skills required in later life.
The school proactively develops positive reciprocal partnerships between home, school and parish.
The school is a key feeder to St Thomas à Becket Catholic Secondary School, Wakefield, supporting a strong and seamless transition for pupils into secondary education.
‘Walking with Jesus, God’s Love in action.’
Welcome to English Martyrs Catholic Primary School
Dear Families of English Martyrs’,
It gives us great pleasure to introduce you to our warm, caring and happy school. We are a single form school, small but mighty, where every young learner’s mind, body and soul is nurtured. We are committed to supporting all of our wonderful pupils and amazing staff.
There is something for everyone here at English Martyrs and as we get to know each and every child, we make sure that they feel valued and supported to achieve their personal best and shine.
Christ is at the centre of all that we do and we have introduced a Virtues Curriculum, embedding our eight core virtues: love, practical wisdom, temperance, justice, solidarity, courage, faith, hope throughout our curriculum. We encourage a love of learning so that our pupils take this with them for the rest of their lives embracing opportunities, responsibilities and experiences that come their way. We have an active and challenging Eco and School Council and Mini Vinnies group.
A committed and hardworking team create a creativity, curiosity and motivation to learn. We are committed to enhancing our curriculum with as many enrichment activities as we can and include a range of trips visitors.
We aim high at English Martyrs and collaboration and partnerships are key players in our success. We work closely with our partner school, St Joseph’s, Castleford and also all of the primary schools within the BKCAT Trust. Our teaching is research-led with initiatives being driven by experts in the field.
We have a wonderful pastoral system to ensure that all barriers to learning are removed for our children and we ensure that every child is supported. We believe in nurture and we are firmly committed to developing the mental health and well-being of our children. We are also firmly committed to working with our families and believe that parents, as the first educators, hold a wealth of knowledge about their child and we value all contributions and the information that they share with us.
We are an inclusive school, welcoming Catholic families, families of all faiths and none.
We look forward to welcoming you to our school, and to a happy and successful partnership with all our new children and families as we embrace an exciting future together.
Mrs Sarah Spencer Mrs Bridget Kerrigan
Executive Headteacher Interim Executive Head of School
Resources for Parents and Carers
Take a look at some of these resources for parents and carers in the Wakefield District.
Happy Healthy Holidays
WF Happy Healthy Holidays aims to keep children and young people active during the School Holidays by providing free enriching activities and healthy food for children in Reception class to year 11 who receive benefits-related free school meals.
For a full list of activities running across the district visit: https://wakefieldcouncil.coordinate.cloud/
Click here to view useful tips and advice on keeping you and your family safe this summer.
Summer 2025 activity flyers
Healthier Together
Welcome to Healthier Together – a tool that gives consistent, accurate and trustworthy healthcare advice to parents, carers, young people and professionals.
The information on this site has been reviewed by local paediatricians, GPs and clinicians across the region to ensure it aligns with current practices and procedures.
Use the quick links, search bar, or menus to find clear advice with easy to use traffic light guide, red, amber, green found in the parents/carers section. This will help to identify when, where, and how you should seek help for your poorly baby or child.
Look through the site for practical guidance such as ‘should my child go to school’.
Baby Safer Sleep Advice
Take a look at the Lullaby Trust’s information about ‘How to sleep your baby more safely’,
https://www.lullabytrust.org.uk/safer-sleep-advice/safer-sleep-winter/
Stay Safe in Water
There are many hidden dangers, when entering canals, rivers and reservoirs, that have tragically taken lives.
The number of accidental drownings in our region is on the rise.
Anything below 15ºC is defined as cold water and can seriously affect your breathing and movement, so the risk is significant all year round, even on hot days, and even for strong swimmers.
Please #BeWaterAware
https://www.westyorksfire.gov.uk/safety/water-safety
https://www.rlss.org.uk/Pages/Category/water-safety-information
Staying Safe Online
Being online can be a brilliant place to keep in touch with friends, be creative and discover new things.
Most people use the internet daily for things like going on social media, game, watch videos, work and study.
Talking to people online that you know ‘offline’ is something many people do, people that you don’t know can also use social media and follow you.
As brilliant as the internet is, it can be used by those who want to cause harm to a child. So you may find it useful to read through the information on this page to help keep yourself and your friends safe online.
Wakefield Safeguarding Children Partnership – Staying Safe Online
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