Primary school in Barnard Castle, County Durham
Bowes Hutchinson's CofE (Aided) School
Bowes, Barnard Castle, County Durham, DL12 9LG
Ofsted
Inspected under the current framework, which gives no overall grade, on 25 March 2026.
Inspections since September 2024 do not give an overall grade, so there is no one-word judgement to report. The full report sets out what inspectors found.
Pupils
- Pupils on roll
- 39
- Places
- 70
- How full
- 56% full — 39 of 70 places taken, so places are likely to be available
- Girls / boys
- 21 / 18
- Overall absence
- 4%
- Persistently absent
- 10%
primary schools average 5.2%
primary schools average 12.8% — pupils missing 10% or more of sessions
- Free school meals, last 6 years
- 5%
- English as an additional language
- 2%
- With an EHC plan
- 2%
- On SEN support
- 16%
England 25.7%
England 18.7%
England 3.5%
England 15%
The neighbourhood around the school
Census 2021 figures for County Durham 067G, the statistical neighbourhood the school sits in — roughly 1,500 residents. It describes the area, not the pupils, who may travel in from further away.
- Adults with a degree
- 42%
- Adults with no qualifications
- 13%
- Households owning their home
- 70%
- Households in social housing
- 2%
- Households with no car
- 6%
- Adults economically inactive
- 39%
England 33.8%
England 18.3%
England 62.7%
England 17%
England 21.9%
England 39.9%
School details
- Type
- Voluntary aided school
- Phase
- Primary
- Ages
- Ages 2–11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Admissions
- Non-selective
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Sixth form
- No
- Nursery
- Yes
- Boarding
- Day school
- Headteacher
- Headteacher: Julie Gibson
- Local authority
- County Durham
- Ward
- Upper Teesdale
- Constituency
- Bishop Auckland
- URN
- 114237
The unique reference number used in all official school data.
Nearest primary schools
| School | Ofsted | Expected standard | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cotherstone Primary SchoolCommunity school | Good 2024 | 40% | 3.9 mi |
| St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Barnard CastleAcademy converter | No grade | 81% | 4.1 mi |
| Montalbo Nursery & Primary SchoolCommunity school | Outstanding 2023 | 85% | 4.3 mi |
| Green Lane Church of England Primary SchoolAcademy converter | Good 2023 | 55% | 4.6 mi |
| Middleton-In-Teesdale AcademyAcademy sponsor led | Inadequate 2022 | 58% | 7.7 mi |
| Woodland Primary SchoolCommunity school | Good 2024 | — | 9.5 mi |
| Butterknowle Primary SchoolCommunity school | No grade | 29% | 10.4 mi |
Where these figures come from
- School details, address and pupil numbers — Get Information About Schools, the DfE register, as at 14 August 2026.
- Exam results — DfE performance tables, 2024/25.
- Free school meals, EAL and SEN — school census, 2024/25.
- Ofsted — Ofsted management information, latest inspections as at 30 June 2026.
- Neighbourhood figures — ONS Census 2021, lower layer super output area.
All published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. If something here looks wrong, the school's own website is the authority on admissions and open days.