St Thomas's CofE Primary School

St Thomas’s CofE Primary School is a friendly, popular primary where pupils enjoy attending and generally achieve well. Inspectors found good quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, and leadership and management, with personal development and early years provision judged outstanding. The school has high expectations, an ambitious curriculum enriched by trips and clubs, strong phonics and reading provision, effective SEND support, and a clear sense of community. Pupils behave well, attendance is improving, and governors provide effective support and challenge while considering staff workload. The main area for improvement is assessment in a few subjects. In these subjects, staff do not always identify and address misconceptions promptly, and they are not consistently clear about how well pupils have learned the intended content. This can leave gaps in pupils’ knowledge. The report notes that this was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and that, under the current inspection framework, no overall effectiveness grade was given.

Strengths

• Ambitious, high-quality curriculum enhanced by rich, well-planned experiences
• Strong early years provision where children settle quickly and are well prepared for Year 1
• Effective support for pupils with SEND, including accurate and quick identification of needs
• Consistent and effective phonics teaching, helping most pupils become fluent readers by the end of key stage 1
• Pupils behave well, show respect and are focused on their learning
• Outstanding personal development, including opportunities to learn about equality, faiths and the wider world
• Wide range of clubs, trips and responsibilities that broaden pupils’ experience and leadership skills
• Attendance is improving over time through close work with parents and carers
• Governors provide effective support and challenge and consider staff work-life balance

Areas for Improvement

• In a few subjects, teachers do not always identify and address misconceptions promptly
• In these subjects, staff are not clear enough about how well pupils have learned the intended content, which can create gaps in knowledge

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at St Thomas's CofE Primary School attended 95.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 9.8% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.0% of pupils at St Thomas's CofE Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 St Thomas's CofE Primary School had 28.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 21.3% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 21.8% of pupils at St Thomas's CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.3% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 St Thomas's CofE Primary School received £6,413 and spent £6,121 for each of its 246 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £73,000 (£298 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Kendal · Westmorland and Furness local authority: places and applications

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

The latest Ofsted rating for St Thomas's CofE Primary School is Good, from an inspection in October 2024.

When was St Thomas's CofE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

St Thomas's CofE Primary School was last inspected in October 2024.

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

St Thomas's CofE Primary School has 239 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Thomas's CofE Primary School cover?

St Thomas's CofE Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are St Thomas's CofE Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 48% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Thomas's CofE Primary School?

St Thomas's CofE Primary School is at Kendal Green, Kendal, Cumbria, LA9 5PP.