St Bridget's CofE School

About St Bridget's CofE School

St Bridget's CofE School in Cumberland is a small Church of England primary with 90 pupils, and its headline Key Stage 2 results sit well below the local authority average. Just 13% of its pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a Cumberland average of 54% for primary schools. That is a gap of 41 percentage points, and it places the school at the very bottom of the LA rankings — 111th out of 111 primary schools. In reading, half of pupils met the expected standard, but in writing and maths that figure dropped to a quarter. The school's ranking score of 13 puts it in the bottom 50 nationally, and its regional percentile is 99.5, meaning it outperforms fewer than one per cent of North West primaries. For parents focused on academic attainment at age 11, these numbers are a clear concern.

The school's Ofsted record offers a more nuanced picture. In its most recent graded inspection in 2014, it was rated Good overall, with Good for leadership and management and a Good for overall effectiveness. An ungraded inspection in November 2023 confirmed that the school remains Good, so inspectors saw no reason to downgrade it. However, the 2014 inspection gave early years provision a Requires Improvement rating, and no separate grades were recorded for behaviour, personal development or quality of education in either inspection. The KS2 results show that while 50% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, the average reading score was 101 — just above the national baseline of 100. Maths scores averaged 94, below that baseline. Only 13% of pupils achieved the higher standard in reading, writing and maths, and progress scores are not available in the data, so it is hard to judge how much value the school adds.

St Bridget's is oversubscribed for 2025/26, with 21 applications for 9 places and a ratio of 2.33 applicants per place, all of whom listed it as first preference. That suggests strong local demand despite the academic results. The school has a nursery provision and offers a range of facilities including a sensory room, sports hall, art studios, music rooms and a chapel. Clubs include chess, coding, gardening and film club, and sports on offer are netball, dance, swimming and rounders. SEND support is available for moderate learning difficulties, speech and language needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. With 11.2% of pupils eligible for free school meals — close to the national average — the school serves a mixed catchment. This is a school that may suit families who prioritise a small, community-feel Church of England setting with good facilities and a nursery, but who are prepared to supplement academic learning at home.

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