Blackford CofE Primary School, Carlisle
Blackford CofE Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in Carlisle. It has a Church of England religious character. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in May 2014. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in October 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 40th-highest of the 40 schools in Carlisle with published results, and 14,209th of 14,452 across England. For 2026 entry it had 1.3 first-choice applications for every place. It was 89% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2014)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Cumberland (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Blackford CofE Primary School in detail
Results
In 2025, 50% of Year 6 pupils at Blackford CofE Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 38% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 73% and 70% in Cumberland and 77% and 75% across England.
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at Blackford CofE Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 10 families put Blackford CofE Primary School as their first choice and 18 named it as one of their preferences, for 8 places offered. That is 1.3 first choices for every place. 2 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Admissions history and your chances at Blackford CofE Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Blackford CofE Primary School are Houghton CofE School (2.2 miles, Good, 75% reading, 71% maths); Rockcliffe CofE School (2.3 miles, Good, 67% reading, 71% maths); Kingmoor Junior School (2.4 miles, Good, 80% reading, 73% maths); and Kingmoor Nursery and Infant School (2.5 miles, Good).
Each of them had higher 2025 results than Blackford CofE Primary School.
Houghton CofE SchoolRockcliffe CofE SchoolKingmoor Junior SchoolKingmoor Nursery and Infant School
What parents say
14 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Blackford CofE Primary School (as of September 2025): 100% would recommend the school, 100% say their child is happy there and 100% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (100%); the weakest, that their child is happy at the school (100%).
Who goes there
15% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 1.7% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 5 pupils (8.3%) received SEN support and 2 (3.3%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is autism.
Staffing
Blackford CofE Primary School had 6 teachers in 2026, one for every 8 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
There is no railway, tram or Underground station within about three miles of Blackford CofE Primary School.
2 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Church (outside), 90 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 0 crimes within a mile of the school. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Cumberland (22).
Suspensions and exclusions
Blackford CofE Primary School recorded no suspensions or permanent exclusions in 2024/25.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; DfE school workforce census; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from May 2014, 12 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted's report, in its own words
What is it like to attend this school?
Pupils flourish in this happy, nurturing school. Those who are new to the school settle in quickly and develop positive friendships. Pupils are confident that staff will listen and support them if they have any worries. Children in the early years radiate confidence as they run to share their achievements with staff. Pupils of all ages develop strong bonds with the adults in the school.
The school has high expectations for pupils' achievement, including for those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils have positive attitudes to learning and are aspirational for the future. They achieve well across a wide range of subjects.
What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?
The school has a rich and ambitious curriculum in place for pupils, including those with SEND and children in the early years. The school has carefully considered the sequence of learning in mixed-age classes to ensure that there is clarity about the knowledge that pupils should learn and the order that pupils should learn this.
In a small number of subjects, the school has recently adopted new curriculums, which focus on deepening pupils' knowledge and expanding their vocabulary. The delivery of these subject curriculums is still being embedded. At times, the activities that pupils complete in these subjects do not always help them to understand the key knowledge that the school intends. As a result, some pupils' knowledge is not as secure as it could be.
From Ofsted's October 2024 ungraded inspection report: the opening paragraphs of each section, quoted word for word. Read the full report Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Ofsted Insights
Ofsted rated this school Good at its May 2014 inspection - up from Requires Improvement.
Rated Good for
Leadership & management.
At a Glance
15.0%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
14 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
2024/25 academic year
Class Sizes
18.0
Avg class size
20.0
KS2
3
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Blackford CofE Primary School
Before and after school care
Blackford CofE Primary School is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school. Source: Free breakfast clubs: schools on the programme, Department for Education Free breakfast clubs in Cumberland
Term dates
Blackford CofE Primary School is a voluntary aided school, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Cumberland's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Blackford CofE Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Blackford CofE Primary School is in Cumberland; for families living there:
- Cumberland's school travel policy: Step by step guide of the Home to School Travel Assistance Policy
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 3
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 3 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Cumberland is 5 (the median across 179 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Blackford CofE Primary School
Will you get a place at Blackford CofE Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Blackford CofE Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Blackford CofE Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Blackford CofE Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Cumberland, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Blackford CofE Primary School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Cumberland got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
89%
Available places
50 pupils
56 places
6 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Carlisle
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Carlisle
Across Cumberland council
Places available
3,537
Applications
2,352
Got 1st preference
98.2%
Got preferred school
99.7%
All primary applications across Cumberland council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(8)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
5
SEN Support
2
EHC Plans
11.7%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
60
Total Pupils
29
Boys
31
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
6
Teachers
10.0:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£56,183
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£8,961
Per pupil
£492k
Total funding
£12k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.8%
Overall absence
20.9%
Persistent absence
43
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Questions parents ask about Blackford CofE Primary School
What are SATs results like at Blackford CofE Primary School?
Of the pupils at Blackford CofE Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 50% reached the expected standard in reading and 38% did so in maths.
What is Blackford CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Blackford CofE Primary School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in October 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in May 2014, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Blackford CofE Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Blackford CofE Primary School is oversubscribed, Cumberland allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Blackford CofE Primary School?
Blackford CofE Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 89% of its 56 places.
How big are the classes at Blackford CofE Primary School?
Classes at Blackford CofE Primary School average 18 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Blackford CofE Primary School?
Blackford CofE Primary School has around 60 pupils on roll. 15% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Blackford CofE Primary School?
5.8% of sessions were missed at Blackford CofE Primary School in 2024/25. 20.9% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Blackford CofE Primary School?
Apply through Cumberland's coordinated admissions process, naming Blackford CofE Primary School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
Does Blackford CofE Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Blackford CofE Primary School is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school.
How many road collisions happen near Blackford CofE Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 3 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Cumberland is 5 (the median across 179 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Blackford CofE Primary School?
Blackford CofE Primary School is at Blackford, Carlisle, Cumbria, CA6 4ES.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)