St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle, Carlisle
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in Carlisle, part of Mater Christi Multi-Academy Trust. It has a Roman Catholic religious character. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 35th-highest of the 40 schools in Carlisle with published results, and 12,428th of 14,452 across England. It was full in 2025, at 103% of capacity.
- SATs results
- Below England average
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- 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 26 Oct 2026
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle in detail
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "Welcome to St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, a 3-11 school in the great border city of Carlisle. The school is part of the Parish of the Our Lady of Perpetual Help as well as The Mater Christi Multi Academy Trust."
The school runs a breakfast club from 8:00am and after-school care.
Headteacher's welcome (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 59% of Year 6 pupils at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle reached the expected standard in reading and 66% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 73% and 70% in Cumberland and 77% and 75% across England.
Results fell from 84% in reading and 81% in maths in 2024.
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle
For September 2026 entry, 21 families put St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle as their first choice and 39 named it as one of their preferences, for 21 places offered. That is one first choice for every place. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle are Upperby Primary School (0.2 miles, Good, 80% reading, 71% maths); The Bishop Harvey Goodwin School (Church of England Voluntary Aided) (0.3 miles, Good, 61% reading, 52% maths); Petteril Bank School (0.7 miles, 55% reading, 55% maths); and Inglewood Infant School (0.8 miles, Good).
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle's 2025 results were higher than 2 of these 3 schools.
Upperby Primary SchoolThe Bishop Harvey Goodwin School (Church of England Voluntary Aided)Petteril Bank SchoolInglewood Infant School
The trust
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle is one of 16 schools run by Mater Christi Multi-Academy Trust, an academy trust.
What parents say
14 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle (as of April 2026): 43% would recommend the school, 43% say their child is happy there and 33% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (71%); the weakest, that pupils behave well (29%).
Who goes there
25.8% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (72%), Black (11%) and Mixed (7%).
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Carlisle Rail Station, about 1 mile away in a straight line.
16 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Kirklands Road (outside), 80 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle issued 37 suspensions, 16.1 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle are St John Henry Newman Catholic School (1.3 miles), Richard Rose Central Academy (1.4 miles) and Trinity School (1.4 miles).
St John Henry Newman Catholic SchoolRichard Rose Central AcademyTrinity School
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; 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 · 8 months agoOverall
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in September 2021. Before that, as St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School (URN 112371), it was rated Good in April 2013.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's February 2026 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
The school has strengthened its leadership and governance, bringing in new leaders and governors with the knowledge to support improvement. A new ambitious curriculum is now in place that clearly guides teachers on what to teach and how to teach it. Teachers are beginning to deliver the curriculum more effectively, and pupils are starting to acquire broader knowledge and subject-specific vocabulary.
Key Strengths
- New interim leaders have made a positive impact and have an accurate understanding of school weaknesses
- A new ambitious curriculum has been developed that clearly sets out what pupils should know and in what order
- Governance and the local governing board have strengthened with new appointments bringing improved oversight and challenge
Areas for Improvement
- Pupils continue to have significant gaps in knowledge across reading, writing and maths from the legacy of weak teaching
- Staff expertise for supporting pupils with SEND remains insufficient, leading to inconsistent adaptations to teaching
- Assessment strategies are not being used effectively, so teachers do not identify and correct misconceptions quickly
- Pupils are not developing secure knowledge because new content is taught without sufficient prior knowledge foundations
- Early years provision has not been sufficiently adapted to meet the needs of children with low starting points and SEND
Safeguarding
Safeguarding was evaluated as effective at the previous graded inspection.
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School is in special measures and has made some progress under interim leadership, but significant weaknesses remain in curriculum design, teaching quality, and support for pupils with SEND. The school continues to require substantial improvement to provide pupils with the education they deserve.
At a Glance
28.6%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
14 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at April 2026 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has declined from 84% to 59% (2024 to 2025). Maths has declined from 81% to 66% (2024 to 2025). Writing has declined from 84% to 62% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
27.4
Avg class size
27.0
Infant (KS1)
28.8
KS2
8
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle
Term dates
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle is an academy, 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 St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle 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
- 14
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 4
- Children hurt
- 4
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 14 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 4 serious and 10 slight.
4 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot and 1 on a bicycle.
2 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 St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle
Will you get a place at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle:
- The straight-line distance from your home to St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Cumberland, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle for 2022 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
103%
Over capacity
202 pupils
196 places
6 pupils over capacity 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: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(3)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
33
SEN Support
13
EHC Plans
21.2%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
217
Total Pupils
112
Boys
105
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
12
Teachers
18.1:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£48,422
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,691
Per pupil
£1349k
Total funding
£100k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.3%
Overall absence
11.6%
Persistent absence
181
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle
Questions parents ask about St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle
What are SATs results like at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle?
Of the pupils at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 59% reached the expected standard in reading and 66% did so in maths.
What is St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle's Ofsted rating?
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in September 2021. Before that, as St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School (URN 112371), it was rated Good in April 2013.
What is the catchment area for St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle?
No fixed boundary. When St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle is oversubscribed, Cumberland allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle?
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle was full in 2025, at 103% of its capacity, so places are allocated on the oversubscription criteria.
How big are the classes at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle?
Classes at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle average 27.4 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle?
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle has around 217 pupils on roll. 29% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle?
5.3% of sessions were missed at St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle in 2024/25. 11.6% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle?
Apply through Cumberland's coordinated admissions process, naming St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle 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.
How many road collisions happen near St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 14 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 4 serious and 10 slight. 4 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot and 1 on a bicycle. 2 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 St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle?
St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle is at Kirklands Road, Carlisle, Cumbria, CA2 4JD.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)