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St James' CofE Junior School

Primary · Barrow-in-Furness · LA14 1NY

Data updated

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Needs attention

Report-card inspection (current system, from November 2025)

The headline grade shown is the Achievement area of the school's report card.

Safeguarding: MetCurriculum & teaching: Needs attentionAchievement: Needs attentionAttendance & behaviour: Expected standardPersonal development: Expected standardInclusion: Expected standardLeadership & governance: Expected standardEarly years: Not applicablePost-16: Not applicable

Inspected 22 September 2026 · report published 15 October 2026

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

115 pupils · 48% of 240 capacity (January 2026 census)

School type
Voluntary aided school
Age range
7–11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England
Free school meals
46.1% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
13.2% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
14.9% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
7.4% of pupils (2024/2025)
Website
www.stjamesjun-bif.cumbria.sch.uk/
URN
112362

In figures

At its report-card inspection on 22 September 2026, under the system Ofsted introduced in November 2025, the Achievement area was judged Needs attention. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 4.2% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Catchment area

Catchment area: not named in the council's figures. Every applicant was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance was not needed to decide places.

Admissions cutoff distance: Year 3

Every applicant was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance was not needed to decide places.

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Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)

26 pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2024/2025

Reaching the expected standard in reading, writing & maths
31%
England 62%
Reaching the higher standard
0%
England 8%
Average scaled score (reading)
100
England 106
Average scaled score (maths)
99
England 105

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, 2024/2025

This school31%
Median of its 12 closest peers53.5%
Westmorland and Furness average58.1%
England62%

On meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, this school is behind the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedResult
St Francis of Assisi Catholic Primary SchoolSkelmersdale · 44 miles awayGood7%
Minerva Primary SchoolTaunton · 214 miles awayRequires improvement67%
St Peter's CofE Primary Academy, MansfieldMansfield · 109 miles awayGood55%
Kingsfold Primary SchoolPRESTON · 34 miles awayGood30%
Aughton Primary AcademySheffield · 94 miles awayNo current grade50%
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, CoundonBishop Auckland · 75 miles awayRequires improvement70%
Aycliffe Community Primary SchoolDover · 281 miles awayGood46%
West Street Community Primary SchoolColne · 47 miles awayRequires improvement52%
Stanmore Primary SchoolWinchester · 227 miles awayGood59%
Winnall Primary SchoolWinchester · 226 miles awayGood68%
Burnley Holy Trinity Church of England Primary SchoolBurnley · 46 miles awayGood45%
St Bernadette's Catholic Primary SchoolStockport · 66 miles awayGood55%

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 84% (Westmorland and Furness 89%, England 60%) · Any other ethnic group 4% (Westmorland and Furness 1%, England 3%) · Asian Indian 4% (Westmorland and Furness 1%, England 4%) · Any other Asian background 3% (Westmorland and Furness 1%, England 2%) · Black African 3% (Westmorland and Furness 1%, England 5%) · Any other Mixed background 2% (Westmorland and Furness 1%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Asian 1% (Westmorland and Furness 1%, England 2%) · Any other White background 1% (Westmorland and Furness 3%, England 7%)

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
4.2%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
11.7%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

2.48 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, primary schools: 2.47 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Westmorland and Furness: 1.04 suspensions and 0.00 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
15.4
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

100% of teachers stayed at the school the following year

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, council-maintained primaries: 0.18% vacant, 0.36% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

37.5% of teachers took sickness absence, 7 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £51,320; 12.5% on the leadership pay range · England, primary schools: £50,856, 17.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2025-26)

This school£9,431
Typical primary school£7,202

Where the money went (2025-26)

Share of spending, with the median for primary schools in brackets: Staff 78% (76%) · premises 6% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 8% (8%) · supplies and services 10% (9%) · educational supplies 5% (4%) · bought-in professional services 2% (3%) · catering 5% (5%)

Reserves (2025-26)

Revenue reserve £87,878; in-year balance -£2,388

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: council-maintained school finance return, 2025-26, DfE · how spending is compared

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
1/10among the most deprived tenth of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
1/10among the most deprived tenth of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher18%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications29.2%18.1%
In managerial or professional work15.5%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways36.8%18.1%
Residents in very good health35.8%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier32.8%62.3%
Social housing46.2%17.1%
Privately rented20.4%20.5%
Detached houses1.8%22.9%
Flats44.7%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms7%21.1%
Households with no car or van60.3%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01019156 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£109,500439 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£80,000–£140,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Semi-detached (44)£167,000
Terraced (384)£103,000
Flat (8)£61,000

Homes around this school are among the cheapest tenth of school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
5an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
5an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
25an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
4an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools