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At drop-off on Liddell Street in Silloth, the day runs to a tight window: 8:40 until 3:10, with a two-week rotating timetable that quickly becomes second nature. That rhythm matters in a small school, because punctual routines and predictable touchpoints can do a lot of the heavy lifting for learning and wellbeing.
Solway Community School is a state secondary school for boys and girls aged 11 to 16 in Wigton, Cumbria. It is non-selective, has no faith designation, and its published capacity is 295. Leadership is shared across Cumbria Futures Federation (Solway and Beacon Hill Community Schools), with Mr Tom Hailwood as headteacher.
The most recent Ofsted inspection rated the school Good across the key judgements.
Polite, kind students and a calm, respectful feel are not vague aspirations here; they are written into the school’s public values language and echoed in how the day is described officially. Respect and courtesy are treated as practical behaviours, not slogans, and compassion is framed as something students show through actions. For families, that points to a setting where relationships and conduct are expected to be steady, which can be reassuring for children who need school to feel orderly.
Size is a defining feature. The school itself leans into the idea that being smaller helps staff know students well and respond quickly when a child is struggling, socially or academically. That can suit students who find anonymity hard, or who benefit from adults spotting the early wobble: a dip in attendance, a change in mood, gaps opening up in learning.
There is also a mature honesty in the way the school talks about inclusion. Students with special educational needs and disabilities are described as fully part of school life, rather than managed at the edges. In a rural or coastal community where choice can be limited, that integration can matter as much as any headline metric.
Ranked 3,839th in England and 3rd in Wigton for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), Solway sits below England average, placing it within the lower 40% of secondary schools in England on this measure.
The underlying indicators reinforce that overall picture. The school’s Attainment 8 score is 24, and its Progress 8 score is -1.9. Progress 8 is designed to capture how much progress students make from the end of primary school to their GCSEs; a negative score at this level signals that, on average, outcomes have been well below what similar starting points would predict.
EBacc measures are also a weak spot. The average EBacc APS is 2.17 (England average: 4.08), and 0% of pupils achieved grades 5 or above in the EBacc measure reported here. That combination is likely to matter most to families prioritising a strongly EBacc-leaning GCSE profile.
One practical tip when you are weighing the numbers: use FindMySchool’s local comparison view to place Solway alongside nearby alternatives with the same GCSE measures and the same England baselines. Context does not excuse underperformance, but it does help you make a clear-eyed shortlist.
England ranks and key metrics (where available)
GCSE 9–7
—
% of students achieving grades 9-7
The school’s curriculum intent is framed around three simple ideas: keeping students safe, being inclusive, and being ambitious. Day to day, that intent is expressed through a broad Key Stage 3 offer that includes Spanish, computing, technology (including food technology), and a local-flavoured set of experiences such as the Cumbria Award and Industry Projects.
At Key Stage 4, the core GCSE spine remains familiar: English language and literature, mathematics, and science. Options then widen into a mix of academic and applied choices that explicitly include GCSE Spanish alongside vocational routes such as a Level 1/2 award in Hospitality and Catering and a BTEC-style sport qualification. For students who learn best by doing, that balance can be a genuine advantage, especially when it sits alongside strong careers education and work experience.
There is also a clear improvement focus on classroom craft. Teaching is described as usually benefiting from secure subject knowledge, but with some inconsistency in the learning activities set and in how swiftly misconceptions are picked up and corrected. For families considering Solway, the right question is less “Is the curriculum ambitious?” and more “How does the school ensure every class builds knowledge in depth, not just in coverage?” A good open evening conversation will get specific about checks for understanding and what happens when students fall behind.
Because there is no sixth form, every student makes a fresh decision after Year 11. The school places weight on steering students towards appropriate destinations, explicitly including further education, apprenticeships, and employment with training. Careers education is described as extensive, and work experience is presented as being matched to students’ interests and aspirations, which matters in a community where travel and local labour markets shape real choices.
The more personal part of “next steps” is confidence. Solway talks often about building moral courage and integrity, and the wider programme described for students, from leadership roles to community-facing activities, is aligned with that. For some teenagers, the ability to speak up, organise others, and show reliability can be as decisive post-16 as any single GCSE grade.
Admissions are managed by Cumberland Council, and Solway follows the local authority’s co-ordinated arrangements. If the school is oversubscribed, allocations follow the local authority’s published priorities, including how address is used to determine priority. Cumberland Council also operates a catchment-area approach, with catchment details available through the local authority route rather than bespoke school rules.
Demand data in the input indicates 33 applications for 24 offers, which is about 1.38 applications per place. That is competitive without being in the feverish bracket seen at some urban secondaries, but it still means preferences and eligibility criteria matter.
For Year 7 entry, Cumberland’s process centres on a clear annual deadline and a single offer day. Families who are serious about Solway should treat the application as a planning task, not an afterthought, particularly if transport, childcare, or clubs will make the day longer than the timetable suggests.
If you are trying to sense-check whether Solway is realistic for your address, FindMySchool’s map-based tools can help you model travel time and practical day-to-day logistics, even where published last-offer distance data is not available.
Applications
33
Total received
Places Offered
24
Subscription Rate
1.4x
Apps per place
The pastoral picture is described in grounded, everyday terms: students value the help they receive from staff, and a calm, respectful atmosphere is repeatedly emphasised. That matters for children who need school to feel emotionally predictable. It also matters for behaviour, because steady expectations and consistent relationships are often what keep small issues from becoming big ones.
SEND identification and support are described as precise, with staff given clear guidance on strategies that help students learn successfully alongside their peers. Reading is treated as a practical priority, including targeted help for gaps in phonics where needed and careful matching of books to students’ stages of development. The text choices are framed as part of personal development too, with reading used to help students think about difference, challenge extreme views, and recognise healthy relationships.
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, and there is a clear emphasis on ensuring students know which trusted adults to approach if something is wrong. Attendance is also treated as an area for active support, with work described to remove barriers for students at risk of persistent absence.
The school’s brass band is a distinctive detail, not least because it signals that music here is not just a timetable subject but something that can become a shared identity. Alongside that sit arts options such as art and drama clubs, plus theatre trips that widen cultural reference points beyond the local area.
Sport is presented as both participation and competition. The programme described includes familiar team games, and the school also highlights activities such as trampolining. In a smaller setting, the important point is often access: a child who might not make a squad in a larger school can still represent their school here, which can be a powerful confidence-builder.
Beyond sport and the arts, there are concrete, everyday offerings that often make the difference to homework habits and social confidence: a homework club after school, chess, debating, and instrument lessons such as guitar and keyboard for Key Stage 3. Trips are also part of the fabric, including curriculum-linked visits (for example to places of worship) and overseas travel opportunities described in school materials. The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award appears as a meaningful strand too, with opportunities up to Bronze and Silver.
The school day runs from 8:40 until 3:10, and the timetable operates on a two-week rotation. That structure can help families plan clubs, appointments, and home routines with fewer surprises, particularly for children who benefit from predictability.
In Cumberland, home-to-school travel is largely a family responsibility unless eligibility criteria for assistance are met. Where support is provided, it may be a pass for public bus or train travel or contracted transport, depending on what is most appropriate. If you may need assistance, the council’s transport application deadlines matter, and it is worth aligning that planning with your Year 7 application rather than treating it as a separate task.
Results profile: The GCSE measures are weak, including a Progress 8 score of -1.9 and an Attainment 8 score of 24. If Solway is on your shortlist, ask directly how leaders are closing gaps, how they check learning in each subject, and what targeted support looks like for students who arrive behind.
Curriculum fit: The option offer blends academic GCSEs with vocational routes such as Hospitality and Catering and sport qualifications. That mix can be a strength for many students, but if your child is set on a very EBacc-heavy route, you will want a clear conversation about subject uptake and how languages and humanities are supported through to Year 11.
Admissions reality: With 33 applications for 24 offers (about 1.38 per place), this is not a school you can assume you will simply get. Make the application early enough to focus on getting the details right, and be realistic about the role local authority criteria can play when places are tight.
Logistics: The day finishes at 3:10, but enrichment, intervention, or leadership responsibilities can extend the school day. In a rural authority, transport arrangements can shape what a student can realistically take part in, so match your aspirations for clubs and support to the travel plan you can sustain.
Solway Community School is a small, non-selective 11 to 16 secondary serving Silloth and surrounding communities, with an explicitly inclusive ethos and a calm, respectful culture described in official reporting. Its curriculum offer blends core GCSE expectations with localised enrichment such as the Cumbria Award and Industry Projects, alongside practical routes that can suit students who thrive on applied learning.
The central question is outcomes: the published GCSE measures are low, so securing the right support and understanding the school’s improvement work should be part of any decision. Best suited to families who want a smaller setting with strong relational pastoral care, who value breadth and practical pathways, and who are prepared to engage closely with how learning progress is checked and strengthened across subjects.
Solway is rated Good in its most recent Ofsted inspection, and it is described as having a calm, respectful culture where students are polite and kind and staff care for them well. Academic outcomes are weaker than England average, so the best judgement for your child will rest on how well the curriculum, support, and expectations match their needs.
Recent admissions demand data shows 33 applications for 24 offers, which is about 1.38 applications per place. That indicates more applicants than places, so criteria and deadlines matter.
On the FindMySchool measures provided, the school’s Attainment 8 score is 24 and its Progress 8 score is -1.9. The GCSE ranking is 3,839th in England and 3rd in Wigton for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data).
Admissions are managed by Cumberland Council through its co-ordinated process for secondary school places. Families apply via the local authority route rather than directly through the school.
Activities described include sport, art and drama clubs, plus a brass band. School materials also describe opportunities such as debating, chess, homework club, and Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, alongside trips and visits designed to broaden experience beyond the classroom.
Get in touch with the school directly
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