Mowden Infant School
Bushel Hill Drive, Darlington, DL3 9QG
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 5 to 7
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- NORTHERN ARCH LEARNING PARTNERSHIP
- Headteacher
- Mrs Lexi Wilkinson
- Sponsor
- Swift Academies
- Constituency
- Darlington
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 180
- Pupils on roll
- 169
- URN
- 138175
- Local authority
- Darlington
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01325380820
About this school
Mowden Infant School is a primary academy in Darlington. It teaches children aged 5 to 7 and has 169 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Mowden Infant School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 18 January 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Trends over time
How Mowden Infant 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 | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 208 |
| 2023/24 | 180 |
| 2024/25 | 176 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Mowden Infant School compares
Its absence rate was lower than 97% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | — | 3.2% | 8% | 169 | — |
| Mowden Junior School | 77% | 3.4% | 14.5% | 295 | 0.1 miles |
| St Mary's Cockerton Church of England Primary School | 37% | 4.9% | 33.8% | 216 | 0.4 miles |
| Holy Family Catholic Primary School | 77% | 4.1% | 15.6% | 234 | 0.5 miles |
| Abbey Junior School | 77% | 3.8% | 8.2% | 362 | 0.6 miles |
| Abbey Infants' School | — | 3.9% | 3.4% | 264 | 0.7 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)
- 7.95%
- English as an additional language
- 3.4%
- Overall absence
- 3.23%
- Persistent absence
- 3.31%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Mowden Junior School0.1 miles
Primary · Darlington
-
St Mary's Cockerton Church of England Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Darlington
-
Holy Family Catholic Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Darlington
-
Abbey Junior School0.6 miles
Primary · Darlington
-
Abbey Infants' School0.7 miles
Primary · Darlington
Other schools in Darlington
- Abbey Infants' School Primary
- Abbey Junior School Primary
- Corporation Road Community Primary School Primary
- Croft Church of England Primary School Primary
- Firthmoor Primary School Primary
- Gainford Church of England Primary School and Preschool Primary
- Gurney Pease Academy Primary
- Harrowgate Hill Primary School Primary
- Heathfield Primary School Primary
- High Coniscliffe CofE Primary School Primary
- Holy Family Catholic Primary School Primary
- Hurworth Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Mowden Infant School teach?
- Mowden Infant School teaches children aged 5 to 7. It is a primary school in Darlington.
- Who is the headteacher of Mowden Infant School?
- The headteacher of Mowden Infant School is Mrs Lexi Wilkinson, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Mowden Infant School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Mowden Infant 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 Mowden Infant School?
- Mowden Infant School has 169 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 7.
- Is Mowden Infant School full?
- Mowden Infant School has capacity for 180 pupils and 169 on roll (94%), 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 Mowden Infant School a faith school?
- No. Mowden Infant School has no designated religious character.
- Does Mowden Infant School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Mowden Infant School as having no nursery classes.
- Is Mowden Infant School part of an academy trust?
- Mowden Infant School is part of NORTHERN ARCH LEARNING PARTNERSHIP. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What is Mowden Infant School's absence rate?
- Mowden Infant School's overall absence rate is 3.2% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- Does Mowden Infant School publish exam results?
- OfferDay shows exam results for a school only where the Department for Education has published them, and none are shown for Mowden Infant School. That is usual for infant, nursery, special and independent schools, and for schools without recent published results.
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 1 July 2026.