Yarlside Academy

About Yarlside Academy

Yarlside Academy is a primary school in Westmorland and Furness that is significantly oversubscribed, a clear signal of its local reputation. For the 2025/26 admissions round, the school received 61 applications for just 29 places, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.1. All 29 offers went to first-preference families, meaning demand is high and securing a place is competitive. The school currently has 243 pupils against a capacity of 210, so it is operating above its official limit. Just 2.1% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the national average, which suggests the intake is drawn from a relatively affluent catchment. The school is non-religious, mixed-sex, and serves children aged 3 to 11, with nursery provision available. Headteacher Janine Pierce leads a school that, based on its admission data, is clearly a first-choice destination for local families.

Academically, Yarlside Academy is an outlier in the best possible sense. In its most recent Ofsted inspection in November 2024, the school received Outstanding grades across every category: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, early years provision, and leadership and management. This continues a pattern from its previous inspection in 2013, which was also Outstanding overall. At Key Stage 2, the school’s results are exceptional. 100% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a local authority average of 58%. 28% reached the higher standard in all three. Average scaled scores were 111 in both reading and maths, well above the national benchmark of 100. In the Westmorland and Furness local authority, Yarlside ranks 1st out of 99 primary schools, and it sits in the top 0.1% nationally. It is one of only six Outstanding primaries in the LA.

The school offers a strong set of facilities including a sports hall, playing fields, music rooms, art studios, an ICT suite, and a forest school. Sports on offer include swimming, cricket, netball, athletics and tennis, while clubs cover drama, choir, gardening and film club. SEND support is available for pupils with specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, and speech, language and communication needs. Parent View responses from 77 families are overwhelmingly positive: 95% would recommend the school, and 97% strongly agreed or agreed that their child is happy. 91% strongly agreed that the school has high expectations for their child. This is a school that suits families who place a premium on academic rigour and strong pastoral care, but the high oversubscription means early application is essential. The nearest other Outstanding primary is Victoria Academy, 2.3 km away.

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