School Chooser

St Bega's CofE Primary School

Primary · ages 4-11MixedChurch of England16 pupilsNurseryCumberland
School Chooser Score
1
Well below
similar schools
Likely range 0 to 2
Out of 100. Better than 2% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedNo overall gradeLast Ofsted inspection, June 2025
Attendance89.1%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families19%A bit fewer than most schools
Places40 spare16 pupils, 56 places
Pupils per teacher4.7School workforce census
Pupils on roll16Census January 2026

St Bega's CofE Primary School is a Church of England school (voluntary aided) in Holmrook for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 16 pupils and room for 56. About 19 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, a bit fewer than at most schools. We give it 1 out of 100. That puts it well below schools like it, ahead of 2% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was inspected 2025, no overall grade.

Longrigg Lane, Eskdale Green, Holmrook, CA19 1TW01946 723259st-begas.cumbria.sch.ukMs Phoebe Gray headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 24 June 2025, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Not judged Between September 2024 and November 2025, Ofsted graded each area but stopped giving one overall word.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Requires improvement
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Good
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Good
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Requires improvement
Early years
Requires improvement
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes
Earlier inspections (1)
DateTypeOutcome
3 March 2020UngradedSchool remains Good

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

5 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way.

Reached the expected level at 11Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected levelOfficial name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading scoreOfficial name: Reading average scaled score
Maths scoreOfficial name: Maths average scaled score
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017CumberlandEngland
Pupils tested515315

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published. As a Church of England school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.

Plenty of spare places21 pupils for 57 places, 2024/25
37% full

36 places were empty (63% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have fallen by 13% since 2021/22, so places are getting easier to find.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Cumberland council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll16Census January 2026
Places5629% full
Pupils from low-income families19%19% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English6%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support31%5 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan0%0 pupils with a plan
Average class size5.33 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils0%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)20%£4,650 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls9 / 7
White British pupils94%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 5.0 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 7.0 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (3), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (1), emotional and mental health (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll162826252530
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals19%18%19%20%16%17%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language6%11%12%12%4%3%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support18%23%20%28%13%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans4%4%4%8%17%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 89.1% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance89.1%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school22.2%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission0.8%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence10.9%8.1%8.5%8.2%4.4%4.0%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence10.1%8.0%8.2%8.1%4.4%3.8%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence0.8%0.1%0.3%0.1%0.0%0.2%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence22.2%29.4%27.8%27.3%4.0%4.6%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.00.00.00.06.7
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers3.4full-time equivalent, 4 people
Pupils per teacher4.7Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants2.0full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£45,153
Teachers who left in the year32%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher1.62024/25

Money

From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£15,534England £7,738. Total £388k
Income per pupil£15,394England £7,697. Total £385k
Spent on teachers per pupil£7,075England £3,480
Money in reserve2%Very little put by: £9,070, £363 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£3,514it spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£15,534spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Local crime rate40 per 1,000 people56% lower than the England average

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Gosforth CofE Primary School and NurseryChurch of England4.5 miles96Good 202471Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares St Bega's CofE Primary School with the 48 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 48 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats2%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
Near the bottom of its group. Its score of 1 is 34 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 0 · middle 35 · highest 96100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 1 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 1% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 0 to 2. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years0%no data
Ofsted inspection20%well below
-0.85
Ofsted grade, 1.2 years old
Progress pupils make0%no data
Direction of travel over five years10%well below
-0.71
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%below
-0.24
2024/25; 18 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils0%no data
What parents say0%no data

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is St Bega's CofE Primary School a good school?

The figures are weak. St Bega's CofE Primary School scores 1 out of 100. That is well below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 2% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 0 to 2, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

What is St Bega's CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated St Bega's CofE Primary School not judged at its last full inspection on 24 June 2025.

How many pupils does St Bega's CofE Primary School have?

16 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 56 places, so it is 29% full.

Is St Bega's CofE Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 36 places were empty in 2024/25 (63% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at St Bega's CofE Primary School?

Pupils were in school 89.1% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 22% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at St Bega's CofE Primary School?

The average class had 5.3 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class had more than 30 pupils.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Longrigg Lane, Eskdale Green, Holmrook, CA19 1TW
Telephone
01946 723259
Website
www.st-begas.cumbria.sch.uk
Headteacher
Ms Phoebe Gray
Type of school
Church of England school (voluntary aided) (Voluntary aided school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England, Diocese of Carlisle
Local authority
Cumberland
Ward
Millom Without
Constituency
Barrow and Furness
Setting
Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
URN
112349 · LAESTAB 9423508 · UKPRN 10077440

Where these figures come from