Cumberland School
Rivington Lane, Rivington, Bolton, BL6 7RX
- Phase
- Special schools
- School type
- Other independent special school
- Ages
- 7 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Head Teacher
- Mr Christopher Newiss
- Constituency
- Chorley
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 96
- Pupils on roll
- 85
- URN
- 135541
- Local authority
- Lancashire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01204324446
About this school
Cumberland School is an independent special school in Bolton. It teaches children aged 7 to 18 and has 85 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has not yet inspected Cumberland School under its current framework. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Cumberland School has not been inspected by Ofsted yet. It opened in its current form in April 2008, and new or converted schools usually wait a few years for their first inspection.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 20 | 37 | 20 |
| Attainment 8 score | 5.2 | 2.4 | 7.3 |
| Progress 8 score | - | - | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 5% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.4 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Cumberland 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 | Lancashire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.2 | 38.1 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 2.4 | 37.6 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 7.3 | 37 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 68 |
| 2023/24 | 89 |
| 2024/25 | 85 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 0%
- Pupils with an EHC plan
- 85
- Pupils on SEN support
- 0
Location
Nearby schools
-
Lever Park School1.2 miles
Academies · Bolton
-
Clevelands Prep School3.8 miles
Independent schools · Bolton
-
Mayfield School4.0 miles
Special schools · Chorley
-
Shaftesbury High School4.0 miles
Local authority maintained schools · Chorley
-
Youth Challenge Pru4.0 miles
Academies · Bolton
Other schools in Bolton
- Birtenshaw College Other types
- Birtenshaw School Bolton Special schools
- Breightmet School Special schools
- EdStart Schools Bolton Special schools
- Firwood High School Academies
- Forwards Centre Academies
- Green Fold School Special schools
- Ladywood School Academies
- Lever Park School Academies
- LifeBridge ASEND Other types
- Park School Teaching Service Academies
- Raise Education and Wellbeing School Special schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Cumberland School teach?
- Cumberland School teaches children aged 7 to 18. It is a special school in Bolton.
- Who is the head teacher of Cumberland School?
- The head teacher of Cumberland School is Mr Christopher Newiss, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Cumberland School been inspected?
- Ofsted has not inspected Cumberland School under its current framework, so no current judgement is shown. That is common for newer schools and is not a mark against a school.
- How big is Cumberland School?
- Cumberland School has 85 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 18.
- Is Cumberland School full?
- Cumberland School has capacity for 96 pupils and 85 on roll (89%), 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 Cumberland School a faith school?
- No. Cumberland School has no designated religious character.
- How have Cumberland School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 5.2 in 2022/23 and 7.3 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What are Cumberland School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Cumberland 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 24 July 2026.