Mowden Infant School

Mowden Infant School continues to demonstrate good performance, with pupils enjoying their learning and exhibiting positive behavior. The school fosters a supportive environment where staff have high expectations for students, reflecting well in the curriculum offered. Pupils express excitement about their studies, particularly in reading and mathematics, where leaders have implemented new programs that have proven effective. Parents largely share positive views about the school, indicating a strong community involvement.

Strengths

• Pupils exhibit positive behavior and have a strong sense of safety at school.
• The ambitious curriculum is well-planned and effectively supports pupils' learning.
• Recent improvements in the phonics program have led to significant progress in reading.
• Mathematics teaching is well-structured, helping pupils develop a love for problem-solving.
• There is strong provision for students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
• Pupils are engaged in their personal, social, and health education.

Areas for Improvement

• Some wider curriculum subjects lack alignment with learning intentions, impacting pupils' subject knowledge.

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 Mowden Infant School attended 96.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 3.3% 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 Mowden Infant 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 Mowden Infant School had 21.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 14.5% 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, 5.3% of pupils at Mowden Infant School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.4% 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 2023–24 Mowden Infant School received £5,578 and spent £5,703 for each of its 180 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £3,000 (£17 per pupil).

Across all 5 schools of Northern Arch Learning Partnership, income was £7,412 and spending £7,665 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Darlington · Darlington local authority: places and applications

Mowden Infant School is part of Northern Arch Learning Partnership, which runs 6 schools. The nearest others:

• Mowden Junior School Darlington
• Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College Darlington
• Longfield Academy Darlington
• The Rydal Academy Darlington
• Hurworth School Darlington

What is Mowden Infant School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Mowden Infant School is Good, from an inspection in March 2023.

When was Mowden Infant School last inspected by Ofsted?

Mowden Infant School was last inspected in March 2023.

How many pupils does Mowden Infant School have?

Mowden Infant School has 169 pupils on roll.

What age range does Mowden Infant School cover?

Mowden Infant School for pupils aged 5 to 7.

Where is Mowden Infant School?

Mowden Infant School is at Bushel Hill Drive, Darlington, County Durham, DL3 9QG.