St Bede's Catholic Primary School

St Bede’s Catholic Primary School is a welcoming school where pupils are polite, respectful and typically behave well. The school has a calm and purposeful atmosphere, and children in the early years get off to a strong start through a rich and engaging curriculum. Personal development is also a strength: pupils take part in community and eco initiatives, enjoy a wide range of clubs and trips, and develop a mature understanding of keeping themselves healthy. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. The main area needing improvement is the quality of education. Since the last inspection, and following changes to leadership, the school has made considerable changes to its curriculum, but many subject curriculums in Years 1 to 6 are new and still being refined. In some subjects, essential knowledge is not clearly defined, so pupils’ learning does not build securely and staff cannot always choose activities that focus on the most important knowledge. Assessment systems in some subjects are also not precise enough to identify gaps in pupils’ understanding. These issues mean pupils do not always learn as well as they could across the wider curriculum and struggle to remember key knowledge in the longer term. The school is vigilant in identifying and meeting the needs of pupils with SEND, and it has strengthened curriculum adaptations so these pupils can access learning successfully. Attendance has improved year on year, persistent absence has reduced significantly, and behaviour incidents have fallen. The school took effective action after low 2024 Year 1 phonics outcomes, strengthening staff expertise and phonics delivery, but it is too early to see this reflected in published outcomes. Governors are acutely aware of the school’s development areas and hold leaders to account. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Strengths

• Pupils are polite, respectful and typically behave well.
• The school has a calm and purposeful atmosphere.
• Children in the early years access a rich, engaging curriculum and get off to a strong start.
• Pupils with SEND are identified promptly and their needs are met well.
• The school has strengthened curriculum adaptations so pupils with SEND can access learning.
• Early reading support is effective, and the school has taken action to improve phonics delivery.
• Attendance has improved year on year, with persistent absence significantly reduced.
• Staff provide effective support for pupils who struggle to manage their emotions.
• Pupils’ wider development is supported well, including health, independence and enrichment opportunities.
• Governors are aware of development areas and hold the school to account.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Many subject curriculums in Years 1 to 6 are new and still being refined.
• Essential knowledge is not clearly defined in some subjects, hindering secure progression.
• Pupils do not always learn as well as they could across the wider curriculum and struggle to remember key knowledge.
• In subjects where essential knowledge is unclear, teachers struggle to choose activities that deepen pupils’ knowledge.
• Assessment systems in some subjects are not precise enough to identify gaps in pupils’ understanding.
• Year 1 phonics outcomes in 2024 were significantly lower than average, although improvements are in their early stages.

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 Bede's Catholic Primary School attended 94.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 12.4% 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, 0.5% of pupils at St Bede's Catholic 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 Bede's Catholic Primary School had 19.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 11.3% of pupils at St Bede's Catholic Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.2% 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 Bede's Catholic Primary School received £7,827 and spent £7,732 for each of its 211 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £145,000 (£689 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 Carlisle · Cumberland local authority: places and applications

What is St Bede's Catholic Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Bede's Catholic Primary School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was St Bede's Catholic Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

St Bede's Catholic Primary School was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does St Bede's Catholic Primary School have?

St Bede's Catholic Primary School has 213 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Bede's Catholic Primary School cover?

St Bede's Catholic Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are St Bede's Catholic Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 57% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Bede's Catholic Primary School?

St Bede's Catholic Primary School is at Strathclyde Avenue, St Bede's RC Primary School, Carlisle, Cumbria, CA2 7DS.