1
Keswick School
Keswick • Cumbria • CA12 5QB
1
9 Jun 2024
Top 10 Secondary schools in Cumbria
Updated for the latest inspections (median graded year: 2022)
This Top 10 showcases secondary schools in the county of Cumbria. It’s built from the latest graded Ofsted inspections. We rank Outstanding (grade 1) above Good (grade 2), then prioritise newer inspections. As tie-breakers, we consider the “Quality of education” sub-judgement (where available), then %FSM and school size.
Total secondary schools
35
Outstanding
2
Good
25
Median inspection year
2022
Ofsted grade mix (graded schools)
O: 6% · G: 76% · RI: 18% · I: 0%
2
West Lakes Academy
Egremont • Cumbria • CA22 2DQ
1
10 Apr 2017
3
Kirkby Stephen Grammar School
Kirkby Stephen • Cumbria • CA17 4HA
2
14 Mar 2024
4
The Nelson Thomlinson School
Wigton • Cumbria • CA7 9PX
2
3 Dec 2023
5
The Whitehaven Academy
Whitehaven • Cumbria • CA28 8TY
2
12 Jul 2023
6
Furness Academy
Barrow-in-Furness • Cumbria • LA13 9BB
2
14 Jun 2023
7
Ullswater Community College
Penrith • Cumbria • CA11 8NG
2
25 May 2023
8
Energy Coast UTC
Workington • Cumbria • CA14 4JW
2
9 May 2023
9
Queen Elizabeth Grammar School Penrith
Penrith • Cumbria • CA11 7EG
2
28 Mar 2023
10
St Bernards Catholic High School, Barrow
Barrow-in-Furness • Cumbria • LA13 9LE
2
14 Nov 2022
How we rank these schools
- Headline Ofsted grade: Outstanding (1) outranks Good (2), then RI (3), then Inadequate (4).
- More recent graded inspection dates rank higher.
- Where available, we use the Quality of education sub-judgement as a tie-breaker.
- Lower free school meals (%) may break remaining ties.
- Larger roll (pupil count) is a final tie-breaker.
Only the ten highest-ranked schools are shown; we also list “near misses” just below.
About Ofsted grades
- Outstanding (1): Highest judgement across key areas.
- Good (2): Strong effectiveness; meets standards consistently.
- Requires improvement (3): Not yet good; clear areas to improve.
- Inadequate (4): Significant weaknesses found.
Ungraded Section 8 visits check whether the previous graded judgement still stands, but they don’t replace it.
Data freshness & coverage
We refresh inspections and school snapshots regularly. If a school was inspected very recently, its report may not yet appear here.
Top-10 pages only appear for areas with at least 10 secondary schools that have a graded Ofsted inspection.
Map of the Top 10
Also highly rated nearby
- Caldew School 2 • Sep 2022
- Millom School 2 • Jul 2022
- Appleby Grammar School 2 • Jun 2022
- The Queen Katherine School 2 • May 2022
- Workington Academy 2 • May 2022
- Beacon Hill Community School 2 • Jan 2020
- The Lakes School 2 • Jan 2020
- John Ruskin School 2 • Nov 2019
- Dowdales School 2 • Sep 2019
- William Howard School 2 • May 2019