Millom School

About Millom School

Millom School is a mixed secondary and sixth form in Cumberland that currently serves 469 pupils against a capacity of 775, meaning it is operating well below its potential intake. The proportion of students eligible for free school meals stands at 21.7%, which is notably higher than the national average for secondary schools and suggests the school serves a community with above-average levels of economic disadvantage. Despite this spare capacity, the school was oversubscribed for 2025/26 entry, receiving 104 applications for 87 places and making 81 offers to first-preference families. This demand signal is significant: it suggests that local parents are actively choosing Millom even though there is room to grow, and that the school is seen as a viable option within the Cumberland secondary market. The headteacher, Matthew Savidge, leads a school that has clearly built enough local reputation to generate competition for places, even if the overall pupil count remains well short of the maximum.

Academically, Millom School presents a mixed picture. Its Progress 8 score of -0.28 is below the national average of zero, meaning pupils typically achieve slightly less progress than similar students nationally. However, this figure is actually above the Cumberland local authority average of -0.44, placing the school 10th out of 17 secondary schools in the area. The Attainment 8 score of 41.2 is modest, and the EBacc entry rate is very low at just 2.2%, with only 1.1% of pupils achieving the full EBacc. At GCSE, 62.2% of pupils achieved a grade 4 or above in English and maths, but this drops to 33.3% at grade 5 or above. In the sixth form, the picture is more challenging: with only 19 students, the value added score of -0.89 is rated as well below average, and the average points per entry of 22.31 equates to a D+ grade. The school's most recent Ofsted inspection in 2022 rated it Good across all categories, a clear improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating in 2018.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including a swimming pool, astro turf, sports hall, science labs, music rooms, and a dedicated sixth form centre. Sports provision covers football, hockey, gymnastics, dance, rounders, and swimming, while extracurricular options include the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, Model UN, Young Enterprise, and various clubs. SEND support is available for specific learning difficulties, moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language difficulties, and autistic spectrum disorder. Millom is likely to suit families who want a secondary school with a strong local reputation and improving Ofsted grades, particularly those who value the breadth of facilities and extracurricular activities. However, parents aiming for top academic outcomes or a strong EBacc focus may need to look at higher-performing peers in the area, such as Keswick School or Cockermouth School.

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