Solway Community School

Solway Community School is a small secondary comprehensive school that inspectors found to be good across the key judgements at this graded inspection; under the current framework, no overall effectiveness grade is given. Pupils are polite, kind and proud to act out the school’s values, and they help create a calm and respectful atmosphere. The school has high expectations, includes pupils with SEND fully, and provides an ambitious curriculum, strong reading support, effective behaviour and attendance help, and a broad personal development programme including careers and community activities. Safeguarding is effective. The main areas for improvement concern how learning is designed and how gaps are addressed. While most current pupils achieve well, some activities created by staff do not help pupils build sufficient depth of knowledge, and staff do not always address pupils’ gaps or misconceptions promptly, so a few pupils move on before they are ready. The report notes that published 2023 Year 11 attainment was significantly below the national average, but explains this was affected by a high proportion of pupils joining late in Years 10 and 11 and by the COVID-19 pandemic; it says current pupils generally achieve well. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the pandemic.

Strengths

• Pupils are polite, kind and demonstrate the school’s values of respect, courtesy and compassion.
• Pupils contribute to a calm and respectful atmosphere and respond well to high expectations.
• Pupils with SEND are fully included and receive clear, effective support.
• The curriculum is ambitious and carefully designed, and most pupils are well prepared for the next stage.
• Reading support is precise, with well-matched books and help for phonics gaps.
• Behaviour support is well considered and effective for pupils who need it.
• Attendance support has successfully reduced persistent absence.
• Personal development prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain, including health, safety and careers.
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of clubs, trips and community activities.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• The school takes care to ensure Year 11 pupils move on to appropriate destinations.

Areas for Improvement

• Some staff-designed activities do not help pupils develop sufficient depth of knowledge.
• Staff do not always address pupils’ gaps and misconceptions promptly, so some pupils move on before they are ready.
• Staff need training to design learning activities that prepare pupils well for each stage of education.

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 Solway Community School attended 92.5% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 16.7% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

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, 4.8% of pupils at Solway Community School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 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 Solway Community School had 13.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 43.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

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, 28.7% of pupils at Solway Community School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.3% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

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 secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Solway Community School received £11,974 and spent £12,315 for each of its 150 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £241,000 (-£1,609 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 Wigton · Cumberland local authority: places and applications

What is Solway Community School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Solway Community School is Good, from an inspection in January 2025.

When was Solway Community School last inspected by Ofsted?

Solway Community School was last inspected in January 2025.

How many pupils does Solway Community School have?

Solway Community School has 150 pupils on roll.

What age range does Solway Community School cover?

Solway Community School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Solway Community School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 31.8, and 10% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Solway Community School?

Solway Community School is at Liddell Street, Silloth, Wigton, Cumbria, CA7 4DD.