Cartmel Priory CofE School
Headless Cross, Cartmel, Grange-over-Sands, LA11 7SA
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- CARTMEL PRIORY CHURCH OF ENGLAND SCHOOL ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Sarah Beestone
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Diocese of Carlisle
- Constituency
- Westmorland and Lonsdale
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 380
- Pupils on roll
- 371
- URN
- 137338
- Local authority
- Westmorland and Furness
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01539536202
About this school
Cartmel Priory CofE School is a Church of England secondary academy in Grange-over-Sands. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 371 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. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 2 March 2022, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 55 | 71 | 69 |
| Attainment 8 score | 52.0 | 46.4 | 47.2 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.29 -0.09 to +0.68 | -0.08 -0.41 to +0.25 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 56% | 45.1% | 37.7% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 78% | 66.2% | 58% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 13% | 18.3% | 18.8% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.3 | 3.9 | 4.0 |
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 Cartmel Priory CofE 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 | 52 | 37.9 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 46.4 | 40 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 47.2 | 41.9 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 9.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 340 |
| 2023/24 | 366 |
| 2024/25 | 354 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Cartmel Priory CofE School compares
Cartmel Priory CofE School ranked 7th of 20 secondary schools in Westmorland and Furness for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 66% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 41% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 47.2 | 5.9% | 15.3% | 371 | — |
| Ulverston Victoria High School | 46.8 | 9.4% | 14.3% | 1,319 | 5.9 miles |
| Dallam School | 44.1 | 9.7% | 14.9% | 761 | 7.6 miles |
| Carnforth High School | 39.8 | 12% | 31.8% | 657 | 9.1 miles |
| Morecambe Bay Academy | 36.8 | 12.6% | 40.6% | 1,045 | 9.4 miles |
| Dowdales School | 41.8 | 9.5% | 21.2% | 877 | 9.9 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)
- 15.25%
- English as an additional language
- 5.6%
- Overall absence
- 5.89%
- Persistent absence
- 14.17%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Ulverston Victoria High School5.9 miles
Secondary · Ulverston
-
Dallam School7.6 miles
Secondary · Cumbria
-
Carnforth High School9.1 miles
Secondary · Carnforth
-
Morecambe Bay Academy9.4 miles
Secondary · Morecambe
-
Dowdales School9.9 miles
Secondary · Dalton-in-Furness
Other schools in Grange-over-Sands
- Allithwaite CofE Primary School Primary
- Cartmel CofE Primary School Primary
- Dean Barwick Primary School Primary
- Flookburgh CofE Primary School Primary
- Grange CofE Primary School Primary
- Fell House School Special schools
- Oversands School Special schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Cartmel Priory CofE School teach?
- Cartmel Priory CofE School teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a secondary school in Grange-over-Sands.
- Who is the headteacher of Cartmel Priory CofE School?
- The headteacher of Cartmel Priory CofE School is Sarah Beestone, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Cartmel Priory CofE School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Cartmel Priory CofE 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 Cartmel Priory CofE School?
- Cartmel Priory CofE School has 371 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is Cartmel Priory CofE School full?
- Cartmel Priory CofE School has capacity for 380 pupils and 371 on roll (98%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Cartmel Priory CofE School a faith school?
- Yes. Cartmel Priory CofE School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Carlisle.
- Is Cartmel Priory CofE School a selective school?
- No. Cartmel Priory CofE School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Cartmel Priory CofE School?
- Cartmel Priory CofE School is part of CARTMEL PRIORY CHURCH OF ENGLAND SCHOOL ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Cartmel Priory CofE School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 52 in 2022/23 and 47.2 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Cartmel Priory CofE School rank locally?
- Cartmel Priory CofE School ranked 7th of 20 secondary schools in Westmorland and Furness for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 66% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 41% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Cartmel Priory CofE School's absence rate?
- Cartmel Priory CofE School's overall absence rate is 5.9% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Cartmel Priory CofE School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Cartmel Priory CofE 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 1 July 2026.