Sir John Barrow School
Argyle Street, Ulverston, LA12 0BD
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mr David Reddy
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Barrow and Furness
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 300
- Pupils on roll
- 235
- URN
- 112232
- Local authority
- Westmorland and Furness
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01229483960
About this school
Sir John Barrow School is a community primary school in Ulverston. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 235 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Early years
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 31 | 31 | 32 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 58% | 61% | 72% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 3% | 6% | 6% |
| Expected standard in reading | 68% | 81% | 91% |
| Expected standard in maths | 74% | 87% | 91% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 65% | 81% | 91% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 107.0 | 108.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 105.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.60 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.60 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +1.00 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Sir John Barrow School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Westmorland and Furness average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 58% | 60.6% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 61% | 57% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 72% | 56.5% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 223 |
| 2023/24 | 225 |
| 2024/25 | 242 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Sir John Barrow School compares
Sir John Barrow School ranked 24th of 98 primary schools in Westmorland and Furness for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 74% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 72% | 4.4% | 18.2% | 235 | — |
| St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ulverston | 65% | 3.2% | 7.2% | 155 | 0.3 miles |
| Church Walk CofE Primary School | 69% | 4.8% | 8.1% | 88 | 0.4 miles |
| Croftlands Infant School | — | 5.4% | 5.2% | 119 | 0.8 miles |
| Croftlands Junior School | 50% | 6.4% | 15.5% | 152 | 0.8 miles |
| Pennington CofE School | 65% | 3.8% | 9.4% | 211 | 1.6 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 18.18%
- English as an additional language
- 4.5%
- Overall absence
- 4.4%
- Persistent absence
- 4.92%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ulverston0.3 miles
Primary · Ulverston
-
Church Walk CofE Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Ulverston
-
Croftlands Infant School0.8 miles
Primary · Ulverston
-
Croftlands Junior School0.8 miles
Primary · Ulverston
-
Pennington CofE School1.6 miles
Primary · Ulverston
Other schools in Ulverston
Sir John Barrow School ranks 1st of the 9 ranked primary schools in Ulverston.
- Church Walk CofE Primary School Primary
- Croftlands Infant School Primary
- Croftlands Junior School Primary
- Leven Valley CofE Primary School Primary
- Lindal and Marton Primary School Primary
- Low Furness CofE Primary School Primary
- Pennington CofE School Primary
- Penny Bridge CofE School Primary
- St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ulverston Primary
- Ulverston Victoria High School Secondary
- Sandside Lodge School Special schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Sir John Barrow School teach?
- Sir John Barrow School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Ulverston.
- Who is the headteacher of Sir John Barrow School?
- The headteacher of Sir John Barrow School is Mr David Reddy, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Sir John Barrow School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Sir John Barrow School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Sir John Barrow School?
- Sir John Barrow School has 235 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Sir John Barrow School full?
- Sir John Barrow School has capacity for 300 pupils and 235 on roll (78%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Sir John Barrow School a faith school?
- No. Sir John Barrow School has no designated religious character.
- Does Sir John Barrow School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Sir John Barrow School as having nursery classes.
- How have Sir John Barrow School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 58% in 2022/23 and 72% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Sir John Barrow School rank locally?
- Sir John Barrow School ranked 24th of 98 primary schools in Westmorland and Furness for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 74% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Sir John Barrow School's absence rate?
- Sir John Barrow School's overall absence rate is 4.4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Sir John Barrow School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Sir John Barrow School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 29 June 2026.