Best secondary schools in South Cumbria revealed
Researchers scored each school based on data from the 2023/24 academic year
Last updated 5th Sep 2025
The best state secondary schools in south Cumbria have been revealed in a new dataset.
Researchers from The Telegraph gave each school a score out of 40, based on data the from 2023/24 academic year.
Some of the criteria used by the newspaper to rank the schools include attainment in subjects like English, maths, history, the sciences, languages and more, the performance of disadvantaged pupils, class size, truancy, subjects on offer and pupil destinations.
The top scoring school in the south Cumbria region was Queen Elizabeth School in Kirkby Lonsdale, with a total of 34/40.
The school has a higher percentage of students getting 5s or higher in key GCSE subjects with 24.5 per cent compared to the national average of 18 per cent and local average of 10.3 per cent.
The analysis said that 99.3 per cent of leavers are in either further education or work.
Close behind it was Kirkbie Kendal School in Kendal, with a score of 33/40.
The data shows that 25.6 per cent of students achieve 5s or higher at GCSE level and 98.9 per cent of leavers have found themselves in work or continued with education.
Both of these schools were rated as “very good” – the highest rating.
Another Kendal school was next, with The Queen Katherine School scoring 31/40.
The school had 15.6 per cent of students achieve 5s or higher and 99.2 per cent of leavers in education or work. It was classified as “good” – the second highest rating.
Coming narrowly behind was Ulverston Victoria High School, with a total score of 30/40.
The school had a slightly lower percentage of students achieving 5s or above than the national average – 17.5 per cent versus 18 per cent – although it did score better than the local average 10.3 per cent.
Additionlly, 96.7 per cent of students were in work or education.
John Ruskin School was next with a score of 28/40. According to The Telegraph, 10.2 per cent of pupils achieved grade 5 or higher and 94.4 per cent of leavers wound up in education or work.