The Valley Primary School

The Valley Primary School is performing well overall, achieving a 'Good' rating with outstanding elements in behavior and personal development. The school fosters a welcoming and inclusive environment where children are excited to learn and feel valued. Notably, the curriculum is well-planned for older pupils, contributing to their academic success and broader personal growth. However, there is a concern regarding the early years provision, which requires improvement, as the curriculum is not effectively sequenced, preventing young learners from building upon their prior knowledge adequately. This has been acknowledged by leadership, who are already taking steps to address the issue.

Strengths

• Pupils are highly engaged and excited about their learning.
• The school promotes a love of reading effectively.
• Outstanding behavior and positive relationships among pupils and staff.
• Strong support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Exceptional personal development opportunities for students.

Areas for Improvement

• The early years curriculum is not clearly defined or sequenced.
• Some support for pupils with SEND is not specific enough, affecting their progress.

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 The Valley Primary School attended 95.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.5% 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, 0.0% of pupils at The Valley 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 The Valley Primary School had 15.2 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, 20.5% of pupils at The Valley Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 0.0% 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 The Valley Primary School received £13,608 and spent £11,711 for each of its 34 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £74,000 (£2,167 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

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

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

What is The Valley Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Valley Primary School is Good, from an inspection in May 2024.

When was The Valley Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

The Valley Primary School was last inspected in May 2024.

How many pupils does The Valley Primary School have?

The Valley Primary School has 39 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Valley Primary School cover?

The Valley Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 78% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is The Valley Primary School?

The Valley Primary School is at School Drive, Oakamoor, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST10 3DQ.