OFSTED
21 June 2022
Latest graded inspection
Latest published outcome
Good
OEIF
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour & attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership & management
Good
SCHOOL DETAILS
About this school
School type
Academy converter
Phase
Secondary
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
—
Local authority
Cumberland
Trust
CALDEW SCHOOL
Census date
15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE
2025/26
School community
Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.
Total pupils
990
990 full-time ·
0 part-time
Female pupils
505
51.0% of pupils
Male pupils
485
49.0% of pupils
Free school meals
Pupils eligible for free school meals.
6.9 pts
below England
School
17.9%
Cumberland
21.7%
North West
28.5%
England
24.8%
English as an additional language
Pupils whose first language is not English.
17.1 pts
below England
School
3.2%
Cumberland
6.2%
North West
18.1%
England
20.3%
Young carers
Pupils recorded as young carers.
0.8 pts
below England
School
0.2%
Cumberland
0.4%
North West
0.8%
England
1.0%
Ethnicity
Largest recorded pupil groups.
White British
89.3%
884
Unclassified
4.4%
44
Any other White background
3.3%
33
Any other Mixed background
1.2%
12
White and Black African
0.5%
5
White and Asian
0.4%
4
Council, regional and national comparisons
are pupil-weighted using published school
census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS
2025/26
Special educational needs
Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.
Pupils with SEN
21.4%
212 of
990 pupils
0.6 pts
above England
England:
20.8%
England
14.8%
0.2 pts
above
England
6.0%
0.4 pts
above
PRIMARY NEEDS
Pupils
Most common identified needs
SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.
ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
2024/25
Key stage 4 outcomes
Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.
ATTAINMENT 8
Average attainment score
44.3
5.1 pts
above England
Latest published: -0.19 · 2023/24
Comparisons are averages of published school-level results for open schools. They are not pupil-weighted official local authority attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE
2024/25
Attendance profile
Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.
ABSENCE RATE
8.69%
Overall absence
Percentage of possible sessions missed.
2.47 pts
higher than
England
School
8.69%
Cumberland
5.32%
North West
6.25%
England
6.22%
ABSENCE RATE
25.16%
Persistent absence
Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.
9.35 pts
higher than
England
School
25.16%
Cumberland
11.73%
North West
15.89%
England
15.82%
ABSENCE RATE
4.07%
Severe absence
Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.
2.26 pts
higher than
England
School
4.07%
Cumberland
0.99%
North West
1.75%
England
1.80%
Council, regional and national
comparisons are averages of published
school-level percentages rather than
pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?
School context
Comparison with open secondary schools.
CAPACITY
Capacity utilisation
94.3%
2.0 pts
above England
Caldew School
94.3%
Cumberland
81.8%
North West
91.8%
England
92.3%
Benchmarks use open schools in the
same phase. Capacity utilisation is
calculated from published pupil and
capacity figures.