Boltons CofE School, Wigton
Boltons CofE School is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 11 in Wigton. It has a Church of England religious character. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in March 2011. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in June 2025 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 8th-highest of the 14 schools in Wigton with published results, and 12,253rd of 14,452 across England. It was full in 2025, at 107% of capacity.
- SATs results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2011)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Cumberland (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Boltons CofE School in detail
Boltons CofE School in its own words
In its own words: "Boltons Church of England Primary School is situated in the village of Bolton Low Houses. We are approximately a 30 minute drive from a number of major towns - Penrith, Workington, Keswick and Carlisle."
Clubs and activities named on the school's website include football, cricket and art.
The school runs a breakfast club from 7:45am and after-school care until 5:30pm.
Coming up: an open day on Friday 18 December 2026. Check the school's website before you go, as dates can change.
All school open days in Cumberland
Vision and values (school website)Clubs (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 45% of Year 6 pupils at Boltons CofE School reached the expected standard in reading and 82% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 73% and 70% in Cumberland and 77% and 75% across England.
Results fell from 67% in reading and 75% in maths in 2024.
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at Boltons CofE School
For September 2026 entry, 15 families put Boltons CofE School as their first choice and 22 named it as one of their preferences, for 14 places offered. That is 1.1 first choices for every place. 1 family who put it first was not offered a place there.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Boltons CofE School are Wigton Nursery and Infant School (2.4 miles, Good); Thomlinson Junior School (2.6 miles, Good, 63% reading, 58% maths); St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School (3.1 miles, 100% reading, 91% maths); and Ireby CofE School (3.4 miles, Good).
Boltons CofE School's 2025 results were higher than 1 of these 2 schools.
Wigton Nursery and Infant SchoolThomlinson Junior SchoolSt Cuthbert's Catholic Primary SchoolIreby CofE School
What parents say
23 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Boltons CofE School (as of September 2025): 100% would recommend the school, 100% say their child is happy there and 80% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that the school supports their child's wider development (100%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (80%).
Who goes there
3.5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 0% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 15 pupils (17.4%) received SEN support and 2 (2.3%) 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 speech, language and communication needs.
Staffing
Boltons CofE School had 7 teachers in 2026, one for every 12 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Station Entrance, about 3 miles away in a straight line.
4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Ascona (near), 80 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 10 crimes within a mile of the school, most often criminal damage and arson, violence and sexual offences and weapons possession. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Cumberland (22).
Suspensions and exclusions
Boltons CofE 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 · 1 year agoThis judgement is from March 2011, 15 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 Insights
From Ofsted's June 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
This is a calm, welcoming school where children feel valued and supported. The school excels at preparing pupils for the future through diverse experiences like city trips and theatre visits, while building leadership skills through the school council and eco club. Staff build strong relationships with families and are particularly skilled at supporting pupils with additional needs.
Key Strengths
- Strong relationships between staff, pupils and families create a caring, family-like environment
- Effective support for pupils with SEND, enabling them to achieve well
- Excellent personal development and well-being provision, including diversity, careers education and enterprise projects
- Firm phonics programme with rapid progress in reading for all pupils
- Effective systems to identify and address gaps in pupils' knowledge
Areas for Improvement
- Learning activities do not consistently enable pupils to link prior knowledge to new concepts, limiting the depth of understanding in some subjects
- Subject-specific vocabulary teaching is new and not fully embedded, making it difficult for some pupils to remember and use key words
- Some pupils struggle to explain their thinking due to weak vocabulary retention
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective with leaders and staff vigilant in identifying pupils' individual needs and creating an open culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Cooking club, gardening club, cricket club, school council, eco club, orienteering, theatre visits, city trips including London
Boltons CofE School is a welcoming primary school where pupils are proud to attend and behave well. The school has high expectations of pupils' personal and academic achievement, providing them with a broad curriculum and experiences that prepare them for life beyond school.
At a Glance
3.5%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
23 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)
Reading has declined from 67% to 45% (2024 to 2025). Maths has improved from 75% to 82% (2024 to 2025). Writing has improved from 75% to 82% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
12.3
Avg class size
13.3
Infant (KS1)
11.5
KS2
7
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Boltons CofE School
Term dates
Boltons CofE School is a voluntary controlled school, so its term dates are set by Cumberland. Training (INSET) days, when pupils are not in school, vary by school: check the school's own calendar.
2026 to 2027
- Autumn term: Wednesday 2 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026)
- Spring term: Tuesday 5 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027)
- Summer term: Monday 12 April to Friday 16 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027)
2027 to 2028
- Autumn term: Monday 6 September to Friday 17 December 2027 (half term Monday 25 October to Friday 29 October 2027)
- Spring term: Wednesday 5 January to Friday 31 March 2028 (half term Monday 14 February to Friday 18 February 2028)
- Summer term: Tuesday 18 April to Thursday 20 July 2028 (half term Monday 29 May to Friday 2 June 2028)
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Boltons CofE School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Boltons CofE 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
- 4
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 2 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 Boltons CofE School
Will you get a place at Boltons CofE School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Boltons CofE School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Boltons CofE School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Boltons CofE School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Cumberland, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Boltons CofE 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
107%
Over capacity
81 pupils
76 places
5 pupils over capacity in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Wigton
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Wigton
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(7)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
15
SEN Support
2
EHC Plans
19.8%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
86
Total Pupils
46
Boys
40
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
7
Teachers
12.3:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£49,123
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,917
Per pupil
£570k
Total funding
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
6.0%
Overall absence
13.7%
Persistent absence
73
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Questions parents ask about Boltons CofE School
What are SATs results like at Boltons CofE School?
Of the pupils at Boltons CofE School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 45% reached the expected standard in reading and 82% did so in maths.
What is Boltons CofE School's Ofsted rating?
Boltons CofE School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in June 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in March 2011, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Boltons CofE School?
No fixed boundary. When Boltons CofE 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 Boltons CofE School?
Boltons CofE School was full in 2025, at 107% of its capacity, so places are allocated on the oversubscription criteria.
How big are the classes at Boltons CofE School?
Classes at Boltons CofE School average 12.3 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Boltons CofE School?
Boltons CofE School has around 86 pupils on roll. 4% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Boltons CofE School?
6% of sessions were missed at Boltons CofE School in 2024/25. 13.7% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Boltons CofE School?
Apply through Cumberland's coordinated admissions process, naming Boltons CofE 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.
What are Boltons CofE School's term dates?
Boltons CofE School is a voluntary controlled school, so its term dates are set by Cumberland. In 2026 to 2027: Autumn term: Wednesday 2 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026); Spring term: Tuesday 5 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027); Summer term: Monday 12 April to Friday 16 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027). In 2027 to 2028: Autumn term: Monday 6 September to Friday 17 December 2027 (half term Monday 25 October to Friday 29 October 2027); Spring term: Wednesday 5 January to Friday 31 March 2028 (half term Monday 14 February to Friday 18 February 2028); Summer term: Tuesday 18 April to Thursday 20 July 2028 (half term Monday 29 May to Friday 2 June 2028).
How many road collisions happen near Boltons CofE School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 2 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 Boltons CofE School?
Boltons CofE School is at Bolton Low Houses, Wigton, Cumbria, CA7 8PA.
Sources: Cumberland term dates; Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)