Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School
Barnfield Avenue, Murdishaw, Runcorn, WA7 6EP
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mrs Vanessa Edwards
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Runcorn and Helsby
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 139
- URN
- 111174
- Local authority
- Halton
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01928711254
About this school
Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School is a community primary school in Runcorn. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 139 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 27 | 15 | 19 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 48% | 47% | 53% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 4% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 70% | 67% | 74% |
| Expected standard in maths | 74% | 60% | 74% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 81% | 73% | 68% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 103.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 102.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.90 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Halton average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 48% | 55.4% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 47% | 56.9% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 53% | 59.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 131 |
| 2023/24 | 122 |
| 2024/25 | 132 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School compares
Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School ranked 34th of 48 primary schools in Halton for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 23% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 53% | 7.2% | 68.2% | 139 | — |
| Gorsewood Primary School | 56% | 4.8% | 64.6% | 166 | 0.2 miles |
| St Martin's Catholic Primary School and Preschool | 63% | 8.4% | 42.3% | 164 | 0.2 miles |
| Brookvale Primary School | 60% | 6.2% | 47.9% | 209 | 0.6 miles |
| St Berteline's CofE Primary School | — | — | — | 252 | 0.7 miles |
| Palace Fields Primary Academy | 77% | 6% | 46.3% | 127 | 0.8 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 68.18%
- English as an additional language
- 8.3%
- Overall absence
- 7.21%
- Persistent absence
- 21.67%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Gorsewood Primary School0.2 miles
Primary · Runcorn
-
St Martin's Catholic Primary School and Preschool0.2 miles
Primary · Runcorn
-
Brookvale Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Runcorn
-
St Berteline's CofE Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Runcorn
-
Palace Fields Primary Academy0.8 miles
Primary · Runcorn
Other schools in Runcorn
Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School ranks 20th of the 29 ranked primary schools in Runcorn.
- Astmoor Primary School Primary
- Aston by Sutton Primary School Primary
- Beechwood Primary School Primary
- Bridgewater Park Primary School Primary
- Brookvale Primary School Primary
- Castle View Primary School Primary
- Gorsewood Primary School Primary
- Hallwood Park Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Halton Lodge Nursery & Primary School Primary
- Hillview Primary School Primary
- Our Lady Mother of the Saviour Catholic Primary School Primary
- Palace Fields Primary Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School teach?
- Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in Runcorn.
- Who is the headteacher of Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School?
- The headteacher of Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School is Mrs Vanessa Edwards, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School?
- Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School has 139 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School full?
- Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School has capacity for 210 pupils and 139 on roll (66%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School a faith school?
- No. Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School has no designated religious character.
- Does Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School as having nursery classes.
- How have Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 48% in 2022/23 and 53% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School compare with other schools in Halton?
- Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School ranked 34th of 48 primary schools in Halton for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 23% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School's absence rate?
- Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School's overall absence rate is 7.2% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Murdishaw West Primary and Nursery School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 15 July 2026.