Tebay Primary School

About Tebay Primary School

Tebay Primary School holds a Good rating from Ofsted, a grade it has maintained across its two most recent graded inspections. The most telling academic metric for this small Cumbrian primary is the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, which sits at 57%. That is almost exactly in line with the Westmorland and Furness local authority average of 58%, placing the school in the middle of the pack locally — ranked 50th out of 121 primary schools of the same type. Digging into the individual subjects, the picture is more nuanced: 86% of pupils met the expected standard in both maths and writing, while reading lagged slightly at 71%. At the higher standard, the school is notably selective, with just 7% of pupils achieving greater depth across all three subjects, though reading stands out at 29%. The average scaled scores for reading and maths are both 105, which is solidly above the national baseline of 100.

The Ofsted inspection from June 2025, which was an ungraded visit, noted that some aspects were not as strong, but the school retained its Good rating across every category: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. The previous graded inspection in March 2020 had also awarded Good across the board, so there is consistency here. Parent feedback is overwhelmingly positive — 100% of the 17 respondents would recommend the school, and 82% strongly agree that their child is happy and feels safe. The school has a nursery provision for children aged three and over, and its small size of just 42 pupils against a capacity of 70 means class sizes are very small, which can be a real draw for families wanting a close-knit environment.

Tebay is oversubscribed for the 2025/26 intake, with six first-preference applications for six places and a total of nine applications overall, so competition is modest but real. The school offers a range of facilities including a sports hall, sensory room, forest school and playing fields, plus clubs such as eco club, gardening, chess, film club, science club and drama. Sports on offer include athletics, football, gymnastics, rounders, cross country and swimming. For children with additional needs, the school lists provisions for specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, speech, language and communication needs, social and emotional mental health difficulties, and other disabilities. With 39.5% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a community with above-average disadvantage, yet still achieves outcomes in line with the local average — a practical choice for families who value a small, well-regarded village school with strong pastoral care.

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