Morland Area CofE Primary School

Morland Area C of E Primary School is a highly nurturing rural church school where pupils are happy, behave exceptionally well and achieve well across a broad, ambitious curriculum. Inspectors found particularly strong provision in the early years, reading, personal development and support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, with children settling quickly and benefiting from a wide range of enriching opportunities. Leadership and governance are effective, safeguarding arrangements are effective, and staff feel well supported. Pupils are polite, attentive and rarely absent, and they are exceptionally well prepared for life in modern Britain through enterprise, community, cultural and outdoor learning experiences. The main area for improvement is that in a small number of subjects, teachers do not identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge quickly enough, so some misconceptions persist and pupils can move on before their foundations are secure. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and under the current framework no overall effectiveness grade was awarded.

Strengths

• Extremely nurturing school at the heart of its rural community
• Pupils are happy and know that staff care about them
• Strong relationships with families help early years children settle quickly
• High expectations help pupils, including those with SEND, achieve well
• Pupils behave exceptionally well and are polite and attentive
• Ambitious curriculum meets the needs of all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and mixed-age classes
• Teachers build pupils’ knowledge securely over time across a broad range of subjects
• Pupils with SEND are identified early and supported to learn the same curriculum as their peers
• Early years provision gives children a flying start, especially in communication and language
• A love of reading permeates the school and phonics is taught consistently well
• Personal development is exceptional, with enterprise, clubs, community work and cultural opportunities
• Governors use their expertise well to support and challenge leaders
• Staff are proud to work at the school and value consideration of their workload
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective
• Pupils understand the importance of attending school and are rarely absent
• Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain and know how to keep themselves safe online

Areas for Improvement

• In a small number of subjects, gaps in pupils’ knowledge and understanding are not routinely identified quickly enough, so misconceptions can persist and pupils may move on without secure foundations

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 Morland Area CofE Primary School attended 96.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 2.6% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Morland Area CofE 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 Morland Area CofE Primary School had 23.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 7.6% of pupils at Morland Area CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.5% 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 Morland Area CofE Primary School received £6,925 and spent £7,143 for each of its 119 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £11,000 (-£90 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

All schools in Penrith · Westmorland and Furness local authority: places and applications

What is Morland Area CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Morland Area CofE Primary School is Good, from an inspection in January 2025.

When was Morland Area CofE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Morland Area CofE Primary School was last inspected in January 2025.

How many pupils does Morland Area CofE Primary School have?

Morland Area CofE Primary School has 119 pupils on roll.

What age range does Morland Area CofE Primary School cover?

Morland Area CofE Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Morland Area CofE Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 100% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Morland Area CofE Primary School?

Morland Area CofE Primary School is at Morland, Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 3AT.