Yardley Primary  School - A Short History

The school was built in the late 30's and opened for instruction on 17th April 1939 with Miss D. A. Bannister as the first Headteacher. She had a staff of five and a roll of 212 children. Until 1965 when the reorganisation of London Boroughs was effected, the school was known as Yardley Lane Primary School and administered by the County of Essex - Forest Division. 

Following the outbreak of the Second World War there were periods of evacuation to Colchester and Kelvedon. After the war the size of the school grew rapidly with the opening of the Yardley Lane Estate, reaching a peak in 1955 when the roll was 723 organised into seventeen classes. At one stage during the peak period Medway Huts were installed, but there were still two full time classes in the hall and one in the canteen that was built in 1949. In that crowded episode most pupils only entered the hall for assembly twice a week.

Miss D. A. Bannister retired in July 1959 and was succeeded by Mr. E. A. Watts, who in turn retired in December 1962 following a period of ill health. In January 1963 Mr. M. Tomkin became Head until his retirement in July 1974. Mr. R. Radford, who became Deputy Head of the school in January 1967, acted as Head for one term until Mr. D. G. Rice took up his duties as Headteacher in January 1975. On his retirement in April 1989 Mr. N. Clear began his work at Yardley. After 26 years as Headteacher he retired from headship in March 2015. After a brief transition period, Mr C. Evans was appointed as Headteacher on 1st August 2016.

The school roll steadily rose over the 1990’s from approximately 250 to 450. In 1997 an Early Years Block including a nursery was built within the grounds. In 2000 the school achieved Investor in People status. At the beginning of 2001 Yardley was awarded Beacon Status by the Department of Education and Skills. In 2002 it became part of WF7 Networked Learning Community. From 2006 – 2009 Yardley assisted another primary school when there was a leadership void. In 2008 the school was rated as Outstanding in an OFSTED Inspection. Including full-time and part-time employees, we now have a staff of over 60. The school converted to academy status in January 2011. On 1st March 2017 the school joined with Roger Ascham School in Walthamstow, with whom we have worked closely with over many years, to form the RAY multi academy trust

Success over the years is been based on good leadership from successive heads and governing bodies and the dedication and hard work of good teachers. The partnership we have with our parents and the exceptional support they give us is the other ingredient that allows us to do our best for children of our community.