Which school has the best GCSE results in Cumbria?

On 2025 Attainment 8, Queen Elizabeth Grammar School Penrith tops the table in Cumbria with 64.8, against an England average of 46.0. Attainment 8 rewards intake as well as teaching, so compare a school's grade 5+ pass rate and, where published, its Progress 8 before reading the rank as a verdict.

When are the 2026 GCSE results for Cumbria schools published?

Pupils receive their results in August, but school-by-school figures come from the DfE performance tables, which publish provisional results in the autumn (usually mid-October) and revised figures early in the new year. This table shows 2025 results, the 2024/25 academic year, and updates when the next release is imported.

What is Attainment 8?

Attainment 8 is the DfE's headline GCSE measure: the average points a school's pupils achieved across eight qualifications, with English and maths counted twice. A score of 50 means pupils averaged roughly a grade 5 across those subjects. No Progress 8 exists for 2025 because these pupils sat no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020.

Why does a school in Cumbria show no GCSE results?

A school has no published figure when it had no Year 11 cohort in the year (a new school, or one that opened with younger year groups), when it converted to an academy and the DfE published results under its previous identity, or when it is independent and its pupils sat IGCSE, Pre-U or IB qualifications that the DfE tables do not count. Independent schools with a published figure are listed separately and unranked for that reason.

Cumbria GCSE results 2025: secondary school league table

37 state secondary schools in Cumbria ranked on their 2025 GCSE results (Attainment 8, the 2024/25 academic year, the latest DfE has published for every school), with grade 5+ and grade 4+ in English and maths, EBacc average point score and cohort size for each school against the England average. 4 independent schools with published results are listed separately, unranked.

County 37 state secondary schools 2024/25 results

Secondary schools in Cumbria ranked on Attainment 8

37 of 37 schools have published 2025 results. Source: DfE school performance tables, 2024/25.

Secondary schools in Cumbria ranked on Attainment 8, 2025 results
Rank	School	Attainment 8	Grade 5+ English & maths	Grade 4+ English & maths	EBacc APS	Pupils
–	England average	46.0	45%	65%	4.09	–
1	Queen Elizabeth Grammar School Penrith Penrith · Academy converter	64.8	88%	96%	6.01	160
2	John Ruskin School Coniston · Community school	52.9	50%	75%	4.67	48
3	Keswick School Keswick · Academy converter	52.1	56%	80%	5.06	192
4	Cockermouth School Cockermouth · Academy converter	51.9	58%	73%	4.80	223
5	Kirkbie Kendal School Kendal · Academy converter	50.1	57%	76%	4.37	176
6	The Queen Katherine School Kendal · Academy converter	48.8	50%	67%	4.27	165
7	Kirkby Stephen Grammar School Kirkby Stephen · Academy converter	47.7	41%	65%	3.99	66
8	Cartmel Priory CofE School Grange-over-Sands · Academy converter	47.2	38%	58%	3.96	69
9=	The Lakes School Windermere · Community school	46.8	42%	60%	3.92	84
9=	Ulverston Victoria High School Ulverston · Community school	46.8	37%	60%	4.12	209
11	The Nelson Thomlinson School Wigton · Voluntary controlled school	46.2	47%	74%	4.04	194
12	William Howard School Brampton · Academy converter	45.0	43%	59%	4.13	208
13	Millom School Millom · Community school	44.9	41%	60%	3.75	78
14	Caldew School Carlisle · Academy converter	44.3	39%	62%	3.99	168
15	Chetwynde School Barrow-in-Furness · Free schools	44.2	46%	59%	3.74	56
16	Dallam School Cumbria · Academy converter	44.1	35%	63%	3.73	179
17	Settlebeck School Sedbergh · Academy converter	44.0	44%	62%	3.63	34
18	Richard Rose Morton Academy Carlisle · Academy sponsor led	43.4	34%	52%	3.65	172
19	Furness Academy Barrow-in-Furness · Academy sponsor led	42.4	36%	58%	3.53	225
20	Richard Rose Central Academy Carlisle · Academy sponsor led	42.3	35%	59%	3.85	176
21	Dowdales School Dalton-in-Furness · Community school	41.8	26%	52%	3.41	150
22	Trinity School Carlisle · Academy converter	41.3	30%	53%	3.70	265
23	St Benedict's Catholic High School Whitehaven · Voluntary aided school	41.2	33%	53%	3.46	149
24=	St John Henry Newman Catholic School Carlisle · Voluntary aided school	41.0	30%	53%	3.79	127
24=	Ullswater Community College Penrith · Foundation school	41.0	44%	62%	3.58	262
26	West Lakes Academy Egremont · Academy sponsor led	40.8	32%	52%	3.51	181
27	Appleby Grammar School Appleby-in-Westmorland · Academy converter	40.7	30%	61%	3.36	61
28	Workington Academy Workington · Academy sponsor led	40.5	34%	54%	3.56	176
29=	Netherhall School Maryport · Community school	39.7	28%	50%	3.25	148
29=	The Whitehaven Academy Whitehaven · Academy sponsor led	39.7	33%	50%	3.26	126
31	Walney School Barrow-in-Furness · Academy sponsor led	38.7	22%	41%	3.19	114
32	St Josephs Catholic High School, Workington Workington · Academy converter	37.4	31%	48%	3.08	93
33	Solway Community School Wigton · Community school	35.0	8%	50%	3.17	24
34	St Bernards Catholic High School, Barrow Barrow-in-Furness · Academy converter	34.6	23%	43%	3.01	150
35	Samuel King's School Alston · Foundation school	30.2	23%	31%	2.37	13
36	Beacon Hill Community School Wigton · Community school	28.8	13%	30%	2.52	30
37	Energy Coast UTC Workington · University technical college	24.2	12%	38%	2.30	129

Schools with the same Attainment 8 score share a rank (shown as "=").

Independent schools in Cumbria with published GCSE results

Listed as published, not ranked. The DfE tables count only reformed GCSEs, so a school whose pupils sit IGCSE, Pre-U or the IB reports a lower figure than its results merit, or none at all. Compare independent schools on their own published examination results and inspection reports.

School	Attainment 8 (as published)	Grade 5+ English & maths	Pupils
Austin Friars Carlisle · Other independent school	15.6	0%	37
Lime House School Carlisle · Other independent school	26.9	13%	15
Moorfield Learning Centre Other independent school · 2023 results	14.7	0%	6
Sedbergh School Sedbergh (La10 5hg) · Other independent school	27.9	0%	126

How to read this table

Attainment 8 is the average points a school's pupils achieved across eight GCSE subjects: English and maths (double-weighted), three EBacc subjects (sciences, computing, history, geography, languages) and three further approved qualifications. The DfE publishes it for every state school; the England average for 2025 was 46.0.

Grade 5+ in English and maths is the share of pupils reaching a "strong pass" in both; grade 4+ is the "standard pass". EBacc APS is the average point score across the English Baccalaureate subjects, including pupils who did not enter them.

Progress 8 is not shown: the DfE published no Progress 8 for 2025 because these pupils sat no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020, the baseline it is measured from, and the same applies to 2026. Attainment 8 rewards intake as well as teaching, so a selective school will usually top an attainment-only table.

Ranks are shared where scores tie. Schools are ranked here on published results alone; our composite score, which also weighs Ofsted inspection, progress and attendance, orders the same schools on the best secondary schools page.

See the best secondary schools in Cumbria on our composite score

Cumbria GCSE results 2025: secondary school league table

Secondary schools in Cumbria ranked on Attainment 8

Independent schools in Cumbria with published GCSE results

More about schools in Cumbria

Cumbria GCSE results: common questions