Junior schools start at Year 3, so children join here from an infant school.
Infant school
St James' CofE Infant and Nursery School
This school
St James' CofE Junior School
Partner infant school
St James' CofE Infant and Nursery School
Nursery to Year 2 · 120 m away from St James' CofE Junior School
Every child joining in Year 3 needs a place applied for through the council where they live, by 15 January in Year 2. That includes children at St James' CofE Infant and Nursery School.
Official inspection reports and grades
Inspected 2 June 2026
Compared with the local authority and England
The share of pupils reaching the standard expected for their age, and the share going beyond it.
| Measure | School | Cumberland | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading, writing & maths — expected | 74% | 56% | 63% |
| Reading, writing & maths — higher | 13% | 5% | 8% |
| Grammar, punctuation & spelling — expected | 87% | 69% | 73% |
| Grammar, punctuation & spelling — higher | 56% | 23% | 30% |
A score of 100 is the expected standard; 110 or more is a higher standard.
| Subject | School | Cumberland | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | 107 | 105 | 106 |
| Maths | 108 | 103 | 105 |
| Grammar, punctuation & spelling | 110 | 104 | 105 |
School workforce census, 2025/26.
Ofsted inspected St James' CofE Junior School on 2 June 2026 using a report card, which grades each area separately and gives no overall grade. The school met Ofsted's safeguarding standards. It was graded Strong standard for personal development and wellbeing; Expected standard for achievement, for curriculum and teaching, for inclusion, for leadership and governance and for attendance and behaviour.
Apply through the council where you live by 15 January for a Year 3 place starting that September. Every child joining in Year 3 needs a place applied for through the council where they live, by 15 January in Year 2. That includes children at St James' CofE Infant and Nursery School. You can usually list between 3 and 6 schools in order of preference, and offers are sent on 16 April, or the next working day. As a Church of England school it may also ask for a supplementary form, and its admissions policy says whether it does.
No. Distance only counts when St James' CofE Junior School has more applicants than places. Then its admission criteria, set by the local authority, Cumberland, decide who is offered a place first. Children in care or adopted from care come first by law. Most schools put brothers and sisters of current pupils next, then distance or a catchment area. As a Church of England school, it can give priority to children on grounds of faith. How far away the last place went changes every year, depending on who applies.
St James' CofE Junior School had 155 pupils aged 7 to 11 at the latest school census. Its official capacity is 180. It is a mixed school.