Swinnow Primary School

Swinnow Primary School is currently rated as requiring improvement, reflecting challenges in delivering a consistent quality of education. Although the school has a warm and caring environment where pupils feel supported, the curriculum lacks ambition and clarity in certain areas, leading to inconsistencies in pupils' learning experiences. Despite the positive start children receive in early years, this momentum does not carry through to key stages 1 and 2, affecting overall achievement in national assessments, particularly among pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This inspection marks the school’s first routine assessment since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and the impact of the pandemic has been considered in the evaluation.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy warm relationships with staff and feel supported.
• Positive behavior observed in lessons and during playtimes.
• Improvements in phonics teaching are beginning to make a difference.
• Children in early years develop a love of reading and learning.
• Governors are starting to challenge leaders about educational outcomes.
• Effective safeguarding arrangements in place.

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum lacks clarity and ambition, leading to variable teaching quality.
• Some pupils, including those with SEND, do not achieve their potential.
• Inconsistent phonics teaching across different year groups.
• Support for early readers is not always targeted effectively.
• Limited understanding of diversity and protected characteristics among pupils.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Swinnow Primary School attended 94.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 17.1% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.4% of pupils at Swinnow Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Swinnow Primary School had 12.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 8.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 17.7% of pupils at Swinnow Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.7% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Swinnow Primary School received £8,703 and spent £9,000 for each of its 215 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,000 (£3 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

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What is Swinnow Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Swinnow Primary School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in June 2024.

When was Swinnow Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Swinnow Primary School was last inspected in June 2024.

How many pupils does Swinnow Primary School have?

Swinnow Primary School has 231 pupils on roll.

What age range does Swinnow Primary School cover?

Swinnow Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Swinnow Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 61% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Swinnow Primary School?

Swinnow Primary School is at Swinnow Road, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS13 4PG.