Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School

Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School is a small rural church school within The Moorlands Primary Federation, with 45 pupils on roll. Inspectors found a happy, inclusive and caring school where pupils feel safe, relationships are warm, behaviour is positive, and safeguarding standards are met. The school's personal development and wellbeing provision is a particular strength, underpinned by its vision, British values, PSHE, enrichment, pupil leadership and use of the farm, forest school and mindful meadow. Overall, the school is performing strongly, with secure provision across achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, early years, inclusion, and leadership and governance. Published outcomes show pupils achieving above national averages over three years in phonics and combined reading, writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 2, and pupils with SEND generally achieve well. The curriculum is broad, balanced and well structured, and leaders have effective support from the trust and governance. The main areas for further development are to share and apply the most effective teaching practice consistently, continue to raise attendance and reduce persistent absence, and ensure adult-child interactions in the early years consistently develop children's speaking and vocabulary.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open and positive culture.
• Personal development and wellbeing are a standout strength, rooted in the school's vision and values.
• Pupils are happy, safe, confident and well cared for, with warm relationships and rare bullying.
• Behaviour is positive and pupils are polite, welcoming and respectful.
• Pupils achieve above national averages over three years in phonics and combined reading, writing and mathematics at key stage 2.
• The curriculum is broad, balanced, well structured and adapted effectively for mixed-age classes.
• Phonics teaching is effective, and pupils who need extra help catch up quickly.
• Early years provision gives children a positive start and prepares them well for Year 1.
• Inclusion is effective, with strong support for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND.
• Leaders, trustees and the trust have an accurate understanding of strengths and areas for development.
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of enrichment, trips, clubs, residentials and leadership responsibilities.

Areas for Improvement

• Teaching practice is not yet consistently strong across the school.
• Attendance and persistent absence remain areas requiring continued improvement.
• Adult-child interactions in early years are variable, so children's speaking and vocabulary are not always developed as well as they could be.

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 Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School attended 96.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 8.9% 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 Dilhorne Endowed 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 Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School had 12.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 33.3% 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, 18.2% of pupils at Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.5% 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 2024–25 Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School received £9,361 and spent £8,624 for each of its 45 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £125,000 (£2,784 per pupil).

Across all 12 schools of The Moorlands Primary Federation, income was £8,246 and spending £7,899 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 Stoke-On-Trent · Staffordshire local authority: places and applications

Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School is part of The Moorlands Primary Federation, which runs 14 schools. The nearest others:

• Bishop Rawle CofE Primary School Stoke-On-Trent
• St Werburgh's CE (A) Primary School Stoke-On-Trent
• St John's CofE Primary School Wetley Rocks, Stoke-On-Trent
• Great Wood Community Primary School Stoke-On-Trent
• St Leonard's Church of England First School Stoke-On-Trent
• The Valley Primary School Stoke-On-Trent
• Waterhouses CofE Primary Academy Stoke-On-Trent
• Talbot First School Uttoxeter
• Ilam Church of England Primary School Ashbourne
• Manifold Church of England Primary School Buxton

What is Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School have?

Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School has 55 pupils on roll.

What age range does Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School cover?

Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

Where is Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School?

Dilhorne Endowed CofE Primary School is at Godley Lane, Dilhorne, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST10 2PF.