Black Combe Junior School

Cumberland · LA18 5DT

General information Junior School · 7-11 years Who goes here 89 pupils, 34.8% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted: Requires improvement

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 15.7% on SEN support Behaviour 6.9% absence rate Staff 14.4% turnover Financials £9,756 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

We haven't asked this school for its behaviour and staffing figures yet. Sign up to tell us you'd like them, and we'll email you when they arrive.

Notify me

Your email address

Leave this empty

We'll email you a link to confirm first. Your address is only used for news about this school, and every email has a link to stop them. Privacy

Black Combe Junior School

General Information

Address: Moor Road, Millom, LA18 5DT – View on map
Phone: 01229772862
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Catherine Dennison
Age range: 7-11 years
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

89 pupils out of 136 places Plenty of room

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 31
% eligible for free school meals: 34.8%
Pupil mix: 1 in 10 (less mixed than the Cumberland average)
English as an additional language: 0% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 14.4% a year (Cumberland 14.2%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 100% moved to another school, 0% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house. This is a small staff, so one or two teachers leaving moves the figure a lot.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Cumberland: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 4 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 8 (0.4 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 5 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.0)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state primary schools in Cumberland, not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 6.9%
Persistently absent pupils: 18.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 15.7%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 6.7%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Specific learning difficulty: 8 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 3 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 2 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 1 pupil

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Specific learning difficulty: 6 pupils

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

Be the first to review — win £100 of books for your school Every honest review enters you into our prize draw

Behaviour

–

Openness

–

Teaching Quality

–

School Ethos

–

Ability to Deal with Problems

–

Headteacher Approval

–

SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

–

Wraparound CareWraparound Care (parent rating)How parents rate the school's breakfast and after-school clubs - availability, cost and quality. Only asked for infant, junior and primary schools, where it matters most for working parents.

–

Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Requires improvement 2024 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 50% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 0% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: 6 percentage points below the Cumberland average (56%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Well below (3-year average 40% against an expected 59%)
3-year average (expected standard): 40%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 78% · Writing 50% · Maths 89% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 78%
Average test scores: reading 104, maths 107
Based on: 18 Year 6 pupils, 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's SATs results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

SATs results over time

This schoolCumberland averageEngland↗ Improving Up 31 percentage points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was 6 percentage points below the Cumberland average (56%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 67th of 111 junior and primary schools in the area

#66Pennine Way Primary School51%
=67Beckermet CofE School50%
=67Black Combe Junior School50%
=67Burgh by Sands School50%
=67Haverigg Primary School50%

Click to see the full ranking

Year 6 SATs ranking

Junior and primary schools in this area, ranked by the % of Year 6 pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (official DfE results, 2024/25). Schools with the same result share a place (shown as =). In small schools one or two children can move a school several places, so treat close positions as roughly equal.

Rank School Score

#1St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School91%
#2Stoneraise School90%
#3Jericho Primary School89%
=4Crosby-on-Eden CofE School88%
=4Hayton CofE Primary School88%
#6Bridekirk Dovenby CofE Primary School87%
=7Fairfield Primary School83%
=7Shankhill CofE Primary School83%
#9Lanercost CofE Primary School82%
#10Gosforth CofE Primary School and Nursery81%
=11Bookwell Primary School80%
=11Great Corby School and Nursery80%
=11Moresby Primary School80%
=14Ennerdale and Kinniside CofE Primary School78%
=14Irthington Village School78%
=14Scotby CofE Primary School78%
#17St Mary's Catholic Primary School76%
=18Bowness-on-Solway Primary School75%
=18Wiggonby CofE School75%
=20Eaglesfield Paddle CofE Primary Academy74%
=20St James' CofE Junior School74%
=20Thursby Primary School74%
#23Cummersdale School73%
#24Broughton Primary School72%
=25Castle Carrock School70%
=25Frizington Community Primary School70%
=25Raughton Head CofE School & Nursery70%
=25St Patrick's Catholic Primary School70%
=29Belle Vue Primary School69%
=29St Mary's Catholic Primary School69%
=31Houghton CofE School68%
=31Longtown Primary School68%
=31Yewdale School68%
=34Derwent Vale Primary and Nursery School67%
=34Lorton School67%
=34Plumbland CofE School67%
=34Rosley CofE School67%
#38Beckstone Primary School65%
=39St James' Catholic Primary School64%
=39Westfield Nursery and Primary School64%
#41Kirkbampton CofE School63%
=42Ashfield Junior School62%
=42St Bridget's Catholic Primary School62%
=44St Bees Village Primary School61%
=44Upperby Primary School61%
=46Brampton Primary School60%
=46Kingmoor Junior School60%
=46St Cuthberts Catholic Primary School, Carlisle60%
=49Norman Street Primary School59%
=49Richmond Hill School59%
=49Warwick Bridge Primary School59%
=52Dearham Primary School58%
=52Rockcliffe CofE School58%
=54St Bede's Catholic Primary School57%
=54St Matthew's CofE School57%
#56Caldew Lea School56%
=57Newtown Primary School55%
=57Seascale Primary School55%
=57Stanwix School55%
=60Moor Row Community Primary School54%
=60Our Lady and St Patrick's Catholic Primary School, Maryport54%
=60St Herbert's CofE (VA) Primary and Nursery School54%
=60Wreay Church of England Primary School54%
#64St Patrick's Catholic Primary School53%
#65Flimby Primary School52%
#66Pennine Way Primary School51%
=67Beckermet CofE School50%
=67Black Combe Junior School50%
=67Burgh by Sands School50%
=67Haverigg Primary School50%
=67Hensingham Primary School50%
=67Lowca Community School50%
=67Newlaithes Junior School50%
=67Petteril Bank School50%
#75Ewanrigg Junior School48%
=76Cumwhinton School47%
=76St Begh's Catholic Junior School47%
=76St Bridget's CofE School47%
=76St Gregory's Catholic Primary School, Workington47%
=80Inglewood Junior School46%
=80Orgill Primary School46%
=80Thomlinson Junior School46%
=83Boltons CofE School45%
=83Dean CofE School45%
=83Maryport CofE Primary School45%
=83St Michael's CofE Primary School45%
#87Bransty Primary School44%
=88Brook Street Primary School43%
=88The Bishop Harvey Goodwin School (Church of England Voluntary Aided)43%
=88Waberthwaite CofE School43%
#91Seaton St. Paul's CofE Junior School42%
=92Monkwray Junior School41%
=92St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, Carlisle41%
=94Hallbankgate Village School38%
=94Kirkbride Primary School38%
=94Robert Ferguson Primary School38%
=94Silloth Primary School38%
=98Braithwaite CofE Primary School36%
=98St Bridget's CofE School36%
=98Valley Primary School and Nursery36%
=101Fir Ends Primary School33%
=101Montreal CofE Primary School33%
#103Northside Primary School30%
=104Blennerhasset School29%
=104Thwaites School29%
=104Victoria Junior School29%
#107Crosscanonby St John's CofE School18%
#108Blackford CofE Primary School13%
#109Holm Cultram Abbey CofE Primary School10%
#110Distington Community School9%
#111Fellview Primary School0%

View full Ofsted inspection report

8th of 8 junior schools in Cumberland for Ofsted rating

#6Thomlinson Junior SchoolGood
#7Ashfield Junior SchoolRequires improvement
#8Black Combe Junior SchoolRequires improvement

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

Rank School Score

#1Ewanrigg Junior SchoolGood
#2Monkwray Junior SchoolGood
#3Newlaithes Junior SchoolGood
#4Seaton St. Paul's CofE Junior SchoolGood
#5St Begh's Catholic Junior SchoolGood
#6Thomlinson Junior SchoolGood
#7Ashfield Junior SchoolRequires improvement
#8Black Combe Junior SchoolRequires improvement

Financials

Spending per pupil: £9,756 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

1st of 12 junior schools in Cumberland for spending per pupil

#1Black Combe Junior School£9,756
#2Ewanrigg Junior School£9,175
#3Monkwray Junior School£8,433

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Black Combe Junior School£9,756
#2Ewanrigg Junior School£9,175
#3Monkwray Junior School£8,433
#4Ashfield Junior School£7,477
#5St Begh's Catholic Junior School£7,288
#6Victoria Junior School£7,273
#7Inglewood Junior School£7,148
#8Seaton St. Paul's CofE Junior School£7,105
#9Thomlinson Junior School£6,733
#10St James' CofE Junior School£6,686
#11Kingmoor Junior School£5,774
#12Newlaithes Junior School£5,562

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

Have you rated Black Combe Junior School yet? Your experience helps other parents.

Rate this school