Merrydale Junior School
Claydon Road, Leicester, LE5 0PL
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 7 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- DISCOVERY SCHOOLS ACADEMIES TRUST LTD
- Headteacher
- Mr Antony Corbett
- Sponsor
- Discovery Schools Academies Trust Ltd
- Constituency
- Leicester East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 360
- Pupils on roll
- 354
- URN
- 143244
- Local authority
- Leicester
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01162767708
About this school
Merrydale Junior School is a primary academy in Leicester. It teaches children aged 7 to 11 and has 354 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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
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
- Safeguarding
- Effective
A short monitoring inspection followed on : inspectors found that standards have been maintained.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 88 | 89 | 87 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 50% | 51% | 67% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 2% |
| Expected standard in reading | 65% | 63% | 74% |
| Expected standard in maths | 65% | 72% | 71% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 70% | 72% | 79% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 103.0 | 104.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | 104.0 | 105.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.40 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.40 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.50 | - | - |
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 Merrydale Junior 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 | Leicester average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 50% | 54.7% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 51% | 57.1% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 67% | 56.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 353 |
| 2023/24 | 360 |
| 2024/25 | 359 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Merrydale Junior School compares
Merrydale Junior School ranked 24th of 72 primary schools in Leicester for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 47% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 67% | 5.6% | 32.3% | 354 | — |
| Merrydale Infant School | — | 6.2% | 25.1% | 334 | 0.0 miles |
| St Barnabas CofE Primary School | 66% | 5.4% | 18.8% | 335 | 0.3 miles |
| North Mead Primary Academy | 69% | 4.6% | 39.4% | 447 | 0.5 miles |
| Green Lane Infant School | — | 6.8% | 10.8% | 278 | 0.6 miles |
| Falcons Primary School | 63% | 6.1% | 20.5% | 293 | 0.6 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.
Inspection history
-
Ungraded inspection report12 March 2025
- 23 October 2019
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 32.31%
- English as an additional language
- 77.4%
- Overall absence
- 5.57%
- Persistent absence
- 16.62%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Merrydale Infant School0.0 miles
Primary · Leicester
-
St Barnabas CofE Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Leicester
-
North Mead Primary Academy0.5 miles
Primary · Leicester
-
Green Lane Infant School0.6 miles
Primary · Leicester
-
Falcons Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Leicester
Other schools in Leicester
Merrydale Junior School ranks 54th of the 139 ranked primary schools in Leicester.
- Abbey Mead Primary Academy Primary
- Alderman Richard Hallam Primary School Primary
- All Saints Church of England Primary School, Sapcote Primary
- Arnesby Church of England Primary School Primary
- Avenue Primary School Primary
- Badgerbrook Primary School Primary
- Barley Croft Primary School Primary
- Barwell Church of England Academy Primary
- Barwell Infant School Primary
- Beaumont Lodge Primary School Primary
- Belgrave St Peter's CofE Primary School Primary
- Billesdon Church of England Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Merrydale Junior School teach?
- Merrydale Junior School teaches children aged 7 to 11. It is a primary school in Leicester.
- Who is the headteacher of Merrydale Junior School?
- The headteacher of Merrydale Junior School is Mr Antony Corbett, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Merrydale Junior School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Merrydale Junior 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 big is Merrydale Junior School?
- Merrydale Junior School has 354 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 11.
- Is Merrydale Junior School full?
- Merrydale Junior School has capacity for 360 pupils and 354 on roll (98%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Merrydale Junior School a faith school?
- No. Merrydale Junior School has no designated religious character.
- Does Merrydale Junior School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Merrydale Junior School as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs Merrydale Junior School?
- Merrydale Junior School is part of DISCOVERY SCHOOLS ACADEMIES TRUST LTD. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Merrydale Junior School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 50% in 2022/23 and 67% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Merrydale Junior School rank locally?
- Merrydale Junior School ranked 24th of 72 primary schools in Leicester for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 47% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Merrydale Junior School's absence rate?
- Merrydale Junior School's overall absence rate is 5.6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Merrydale Junior School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Merrydale Junior 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 2 July 2026.