Merdon Junior School

Merdon Junior School is a good school that has stabilised after a period of leadership turbulence. Inspectors found pupils feel safe, behave well and are happy learners, with raised expectations now embedded in a broad and interesting curriculum. Staff check learning effectively, adapt teaching for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and support reading and phonics well, so pupils achieve positively across subjects, including disadvantaged pupils. Pupils benefit from strong personal development opportunities, including outdoor learning and clubs, and safeguarding is effective. The main area for improvement is the personal development programme, which is not yet fully embedded. As a result, pupils are sometimes unclear about important content, including some fundamental British values, and teaching of personal, social and health education has been variable over time. Leadership is otherwise a strength: staff, governors and the community support the school well, although the interim leadership team and recent headteacher change provide important context. This was also the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe and are thriving in a culture of raised expectations.
• Pupils behave well, attend keenly and apply the school’s golden rules consistently.
• The curriculum is broad, well sequenced and helps pupils remember key content over time.
• Staff implement the curriculum expertly and check pupils’ knowledge effectively.
• Pupils with SEND are identified swiftly and teaching is adapted to meet their needs.
• Reading and phonics are taught well, helping pupils read accurately and catch up.
• Disadvantaged pupils achieve equally well and access a broad range of opportunities.
• Pupils benefit from extensive outdoor learning, clubs and experiences.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• Leaders, governors and staff work well together and are well supported.

Areas for Improvement

• The personal development programme is not fully embedded, so pupils are sometimes unclear about important content.
• Pupils’ recall of some fundamental British values is mixed because PSHE teaching has been variable over time.

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 Merdon Junior School attended 95.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 11.5% 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, 2.2% of pupils at Merdon Junior 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 Merdon Junior School had 20.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 30.0% 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, 13.6% of pupils at Merdon Junior School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.6% 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 Merdon Junior School received £6,530 and spent £6,786 for each of its 221 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £117,000 (£531 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 Eastleigh · Hampshire local authority: places and applications

What is Merdon Junior School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Merdon Junior School is Good, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was Merdon Junior School last inspected by Ofsted?

Merdon Junior School was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does Merdon Junior School have?

Merdon Junior School has 221 pupils on roll.

What age range does Merdon Junior School cover?

Merdon Junior School for pupils aged 7 to 11.

What are Merdon Junior School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 52% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Merdon Junior School?

Merdon Junior School is at Merdon Avenue, Chandler's Ford, Eastleigh, Hampshire, SO53 1EJ.