Furness Academy

What the figures show

• For Year 7 in 2026 the last child offered a place lived 5.5 miles away, the 2nd shortest of 5 Westmorland and Furness secondary schools with a published last distance.
• The Year 7 last distance in 2026 was nearer the school than in 2025 and further than in 2024, and it swung sharply between years.
• In 2024/25, 36% got grade 5 or above in GCSE English and maths, 5th highest of 9 schools: this one and the 8 nearest secondary schools in Westmorland and Furness.
• Year 7 2026 had 263 first-choice applications for 258 offers; 252 offers went to first-choice families, and 11 first-choice families (4%) were not offered a place.

Worked out by Catchmently from the published figures on this page and those for other Westmorland and Furness schools. Distances are as published; how they were measured differs between admission authorities.

Key facts

Address

Park Drive, Barrow-in-Furness, LA13 9BB

Type

Academy sponsor led

Phase

Secondary

Ages

11–16

Admissions policy

Non-selective

Council

Westmorland and Furness

Pupils on roll

1,187 January 2026 school census

Free school meals

29.4% of pupils eligible

Pupils per teacher

17.7

Official record: Get Information about Schools · as at 15 September 2026

Ofsted

Good Inspected 13 March 2023

Strengths

• “Pupils at Furness Academy have been able to benefit from transformational changes to the school for the better over recent years.”
• “Leaders have realised their clear vision to raise expectations for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).”
• “Leaders have set out high expectations for both pupils’ behaviour and achievement.”

To improve

• “Leaders are aware that some older pupils have been unable to benefit fully from their improvements to how well the curriculum is designed and delivered.”
• “However, occasionally, in a small number of subjects, teachers do not use assessment strategies as well to rectify pupils’ misunderstandings.”
• “In these subjects, this prevents some pupils from having a strong foundation on which to build and learn as well as they should.”

Safeguarding: Effective

Quoted from the Ofsted report published 15 June 2023 (read the report). Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0.

Exam results

Department for Education school performance data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Applications and offers

• 2026 Year 7 entry: 263 first-preference applications, 258 offers in total, 252 offers to first-preference applicants.

Department for Education, school-level applications and offers, figures on national offer day. Earlier years are in the pass.

Nearby secondary schools

Straight-line distance, in Westmorland and Furness.

• St Bernards Catholic High School, Barrow 1.0 mi Good Last distance published
• Walney Academy 2.1 mi Not judged Last distance published
• Dowdales School 3.1 mi Standards maintained Last distance published
• Ulverston Victoria High School 6.8 mi Not judged Last distance published
• Cartmel Priory CofE School 12.0 mi No Ofsted grade Last distance published
• John Ruskin School 18.2 mi Improved significantly Last distance published
• Dallam School 19.5 mi No Ofsted grade Last distance published
• The Lakes School 22.3 mi Standards maintained Last distance published

More in Westmorland and Furness

• All 213 schools and nurseries in Westmorland and Furness
• Westmorland and Furness secondary schools in a table, sorted by results, Ofsted and offers
• Compare Westmorland and Furness with other areas: offers, results, crime, house prices and rents
• Schools in every council in England