Scotby CofE Primary School

Scotby CofE Primary School is a calm, welcoming Church of England primary where pupils achieve well and behave positively. This was a full section 5 inspection, and safeguarding was judged to be met. By the end of Year 6, pupils’ attainment in reading and writing is above national expectations, while mathematics and grammar, punctuation and spelling are well above national expectations. Younger pupils learn phonics successfully, and disadvantaged pupils and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities make suitable progress and are fully included in school life. The school has 230 pupils, with free school meal eligibility well below the national average and SEND levels close to average. Leaders have built on the quality of education since the previous inspection. The curriculum is ambitious, broad and balanced, reading is prioritised, and the early years provides a strong start. Attendance is good, behaviour is consistently well managed, and pupils benefit from a rich personal development programme. Leadership, governance and staff development are effective, and parents speak highly of the school. However, provision is not yet consistently strong in every area. The main areas for development are ensuring that writing fluency and accuracy are taught consistently, especially for pupils at the early stages of writing; improving teachers’ confidence and consistency in delivering subject content so that explanations are consistently detailed; and strengthening early years oversight so that all adults design interactions and activities that secure the intended knowledge. Leaders have an accurate view of these priorities and clear plans to address them.

Strengths

• Pupils achieve well across the curriculum, with reading and writing above national expectations by the end of Year 6.
• Mathematics and grammar, punctuation and spelling attainment are well above national expectations.
• Phonics outcomes by the end of Year 1 are in line with national expectations.
• Disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND make suitable progress from their starting points.
• Attendance is strong, with pupils with SEND attending above the national average for their group.
• Pupils behave well, show positive attitudes to learning and are kind to one another.
• Bullying or discriminatory behaviour is rare and staff deal with concerns quickly and effectively.
• The curriculum is ambitious, broad and balanced, with content carefully sequenced across year groups.
• Reading is prioritised across the school, and pupils at the early stages of reading receive helpful support.
• Early years provision is ambitious, with talking, listening and vocabulary development central to children’s learning.
• Pupils with SEND access the same ambitious curriculum as their peers and receive purposeful adaptations.
• Leadership and governance are effective, with clear improvement priorities and strong financial oversight.
• Staff feel valued and supported, and benefit from purposeful professional development.
• Personal development is comprehensive, including pupil leadership, British values, online safety and enrichment opportunities.
• Parents speak highly of the school and value the support their children receive.

Areas for Improvement

• In some subjects, pupils’ knowledge is less detailed than it could be.
• Some pupils at the early stages of writing do not write with the fluency and accuracy they need.
• Some teachers do not consistently help pupils develop accuracy in handwriting, spelling and grammar.
• Some teachers are less confident in teaching subject content, so their explanations are not consistently detailed.
• At times, some early years adults do not design interactions and activities well enough to help children secure the intended knowledge.
• Leaders’ collective oversight of the early years is still developing.

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 Scotby CofE Primary School attended 96.3% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.7% 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, 0.4% of pupils at Scotby 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 Scotby CofE Primary School had 18.2 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, 22.8% of pupils at Scotby CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.2% 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 Scotby CofE Primary School received £7,014 and spent £7,048 for each of its 215 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £27,000 (£125 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).

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All schools in Carlisle · Cumberland local authority: places and applications

What is Scotby CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Scotby CofE Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Scotby CofE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Scotby CofE Primary School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Scotby CofE Primary School have?

Scotby CofE Primary School has 215 pupils on roll.

What age range does Scotby CofE Primary School cover?

Scotby CofE Primary School for pupils aged 5 to 11.

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

In 2025, 78% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Scotby CofE Primary School?

Scotby CofE Primary School is at Park Road, Scotby, Carlisle, Cumbria, CA4 8AT.