Moira Primary School

Moira Primary School is a warm, welcoming and inclusive community primary school where pupils feel safe, cared for and proud of their school. This inspection found the school has improved substantially since its previous requires improvement judgement, with effective provision across the curriculum, behaviour, personal development, leadership and early years. Leaders have created high expectations and a broad, ambitious curriculum that builds knowledge carefully from early years onwards. Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and supported well, reading is central to the school's work, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. The main areas for further improvement are behaviour and early reading for a small group. The behaviour policy is not always applied consistently, and a few pupils' behaviour or learning can be disrupted as a result. In addition, a small number of pupils are given reading books that are too hard and do not closely match the sounds they know, which limits their fluency. The school is well placed to address these points, with supportive governance and staff who feel their workload and wellbeing are considered.

Strengths

• Warm, welcoming and inclusive school culture with strong care for pupils
• High expectations and a clear vision for pupils to be healthy, kind, curious, adventurous and creative
• Broad and ambitious curriculum with precisely identified key knowledge
• Curriculum carefully sequenced so pupils' understanding deepens over time
• Strong early years foundation for later learning
• Effective support for pupils with SEND, including carefully considered targets and strategies
• Consistent teaching structures that help pupils remember prior learning and new concepts
• Reading culture with expert phonics teaching and effective extra help for pupils who struggle
• Well-considered personal development programme covering safety, relationships, faiths and cultures
• Effective safeguarding arrangements
• Good range of responsibilities, trips and enrichment opportunities
• Supportive governance and attention to staff workload and wellbeing

Areas for Improvement

• Behaviour policy not consistently followed by staff
• Expectations of pupils' behaviour are occasionally not high enough
• A very small number of incidents briefly disrupt pupils' learning
• Reading books are not closely matched to the sounds some pupils know
• A small number of pupils struggle to read with sufficient fluency

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 Moira Primary School attended 94.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 11.6% 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, 3.8% of pupils at Moira 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 Moira Primary School had 19.2 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, 17.4% of pupils at Moira Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 7.6% 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 Moira Primary School received £8,192 and spent £8,084 for each of its 184 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £74,000 (£405 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 Swadlincote · Leicestershire local authority: places and applications

What is Moira Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Moira Primary School is Good, from an inspection in February 2025.

When was Moira Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Moira Primary School was last inspected in February 2025.

How many pupils does Moira Primary School have?

Moira Primary School has 184 pupils on roll.

What age range does Moira Primary School cover?

Moira Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 62% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Moira Primary School?

Moira Primary School is at Blackfordby Lane, Moira, Swadlincote, Derbyshire, DE12 6EX.