School profile

Merrydale Infant School

Primary · Community school · Leicester, LE5 0PL

Good

Map showing Merrydale Infant School

Schools
Numbers on map: pupil ages
Outstanding
Good
Requires improvement
Inadequate
Not rated

Merrydale Infant School Ofsted rating

Ofsted four-point inspection gradesInspected 21 Nov 2023

Ofsted rating
Good
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership and management
Good
Early years
Good
Safeguarding
Effective

School facts

PhasePrimary
TypeCommunity school
Ages3 to 7
Pupils334
GenderMixed
Head teacherMr Mark Tipple-Johnson
Local authorityLeicester
WebsiteVisit

Source: Get Information about Schools, URN 120023.

Pupils

2025/26

Pupils at the January school census.

MeasureThis school
Total pupils334
Girls158
Boys176
Eligible for free school mealsPupils from low-income families who can get free school meals.13.8%
First language not English84.4%
School places2024/25Capacity, not including nursery.270
Pupils excluding nurseryPupils who take up school places.262
Unfilled placesShare of school places not taken.3%
SEN supportPupils with special educational needs who get extra help at school.37
EHC planEducation, health and care plan: a legal plan for pupils with more complex needs.4
Average class size25.6

Source: DfE, Schools, pupils and their characteristics and School capacity, Academic year 2025/26, published 04 Jun 2026.

Pupils ethnicity

2025/26

Share of pupils in each ethnic group, as recorded at the January school census.

Pupils ethnicity

Indian
66.8%
White British
7.2%
Pakistani
4.8%
African
4.8%
Other Asian
3.6%
Other White
2.7%
Other ethnic group
2.7%
Other mixed
2.1%
White and Asian
1.8%
White and Black Caribbean
0.9%

Source: DfE, Schools, pupils and their characteristics, Academic year 2025/26, published 04 Jun 2026.

Teachers and staff

2025/26

Staff numbers are full-time equivalent (FTE). Teacher turnover shows where the school's teachers were by the following year's census.

MeasureThis school
Pupils per teacher21.7
Pupils per adultAdults include teaching assistants.11
Teachers (FTE)13.9
Teaching assistants (FTE)13.44
Support staff (FTE)20.17
Teachers in census year (FTE)2024/2514.8
Teachers who stayed (FTE)2024/2513.8
Teachers who moved to another state school (FTE)2024/250
Teachers who left state schools (FTE)2024/251

Source: DfE, School workforce in England, Reporting year 2025, published 04 Jun 2026.

Admissions

2026/27

Applications and offers for the main entry points. Offers from oversubscribed schools depend on each school's admissions criteria; check the local authority admissions page.

MeasureThis school
Offers made (Reception)Places offered on national offer day.76
Applications (Reception)Includes every preference parents listed.101
First preference applications (Reception)Families who put this school as their first choice.75
First preference offers (Reception)First-choice applicants who were offered a place.75
Applications from another local authority (Reception)1

Source: DfE, Primary and secondary school applications and offers, Academic year 2026/27, published 18 Jun 2026.

Attendance

2025/26

Share of possible sessions missed.

MeasureThis schoolLeicesterEngland
Overall absence6.6%, worse than England, worse than Leicester5.3%5.1%
Persistent absencePupils missing 10% or more of sessions.23.1%, worse than England, worse than Leicester15.7%13.2%
Severe absencePupils missing 50% or more of sessions.1.6%, worse than England, similar to Leicester1.4%1%

Source: DfE, Pupil absence in schools in England, Autumn and spring term 2025/26, published 15 Oct 2026.

Suspensions and exclusions

2024/25

Suspension rate is the number of suspensions per 100 pupils, so one pupil can be counted more than once. A permanently excluded pupil is removed from the school roll.

MeasureThis school
Suspension rate0.3%
Pupils with one or more suspensions0.3%
Permanent exclusion rate0%
Permanent exclusions0

Source: DfE, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England, Academic year 2024/25, published 09 Jul 2026.

Nearby schools

Ratings include official Ofsted judgements and Area360 summaries of inspection grades. Open a school’s profile for its inspection grades and results.

Schools near Merrydale Infant School
DistancePhaseNameTypeRatingLinks
0.0 miPrimaryMerrydale Junior SchoolAcademy converter
Good
0.3 miPrimarySt Barnabas CofE Primary SchoolVoluntary controlled school
Good
0.5 miNot applicableThe Imam Muhammad Adam Institute SchoolOther independent school
Good
0.5 miPrimaryNorth Mead Primary AcademyAcademy sponsor led
Good
0.6 miPrimaryGreen Lane Infant SchoolAcademy converter
Good
0.6 miNot applicableJameah Boys AcademyOther independent school
Unrated
0.6 miNot applicableJameah AcademyOther independent school
Unrated
0.7 miPrimaryBridge Junior SchoolAcademy converter
Requires improvement
0.7 miNot applicableAl-Aqsa Schools TrustOther independent school
Good
0.7 miPrimaryFalcons Primary SchoolFree schools
Good

Frequently asked questions about Merrydale Infant School

What is Merrydale Infant School's Ofsted rating?

Merrydale Infant School is rated Good by Ofsted, last inspected on 21 Nov 2023.

How hard is it to get into Merrydale Infant School?

For Reception entry in 2026/27, Merrydale Infant School made 76 offers from 101 applications (1.3 per offer), and 75 of 75 first-preference applicants got a place. Applications include every preference parents listed.

How many pupils attend Merrydale Infant School?

Merrydale Infant School has 334 pupils aged 3 to 7.

What is the capacity of Merrydale Infant School?

Merrydale Infant School had 270 school places in 2024/25.

How big are classes at Merrydale Infant School?

At Merrydale Infant School, the average class had 25.6 pupils in 2025/26, and there were 21.7 pupils per teacher.

What is attendance like at Merrydale Infant School?

In 2025/26, pupils at Merrydale Infant School missed 6.6% of sessions (England 5.1%), and 23.1% were persistently absent, missing 10% or more of sessions (England 13.2%).

Figures are the latest published by the Department for Education for each measure. Small numbers are suppressed by the publisher to protect pupils' privacy. Read how Area360 school ratings and rankings work.